Click here to view a video presenting the WEST project. As the CEA-Euratom tokamak Tore Supra undergoes a major transformation to be used as a test bench for ITER, its innards are being progressively disassembled. From huge heating antennas to the intricate network of piping that used to cool the limiteur (Tore Supra's equivalent of a divertor), most of the in-vessel components are now carefully wrapped and stored in an annex of the vast tokamak hall—a spectacular indication of how complex a machine a tokamak can be.   Four years from now, the 26-year-old tokamak will be a brand new machine. Extra magnetic coils will be added to confine the originally circular plasma into an ITER-like "D" shape and the carbon limiteur will be replaced by a tungsten divertor closely resembling that of ITER.   However, in advance of that date (as early as 2016) the machine will be ready to test the first samples of plasma-facing units—an arrangement of small tungsten blocks that, once assembled, will form the new divertor.   The WEST project (W Environment in Steady-state Tokamak), initiated in 2009, is now entering a decisive phase: as dismantling ends (1,500 components, representing 65 tons of hardware, have been handled), industry is beginning to launch pre-series fabrication and a wide international collaboration is being established.   "With this new configuration, the machine's divertor will be exposed to the same heat flux as in ITER," explains Jérôme Bucalossi, who heads the WEST project at CEA's Institut de Recherche sur la Fusion Magnétique (IRFM). Like in ITER, the WEST divertor will have to withstand a 10 MW/m2 heat load, comparable to that which an improbable spaceship would face in the immediate vicinity of the Sun's surface.   How will the tungsten plasma-facing units behave in such an extreme environment? How close to one another should they be assembled? What will be the consequences of a slight misalignment of the individual blocks? WEST should answer these questions that are of vital importance for ITER.   "WEST is more than a test bench for the ITER divertor—it's a 'risk limiter' as well," says Bucalossi. "It will enable us to validate tungsten technology, acquire data on metal fatigue and explore the components' boundary conditions, particularly in terms of adjustment."   Although the design of the ITER divertor is close to finalization, WEST feedback can still have influence on some details. "And as we all know," smiles Bucalossi, "this is where the Devil likes to hide..."

Seen from the entrance of the ITER Headquarters, the Massif des Écrins, with summits between 3,000 and 4,100 meters, glimmers in the evening light. The buildings of the Vinon-sur-Verdon aeroclub are at the forefront.   The Barre des Écrins (Alt. 4102 m), the highest summit in the range, was France's highest until 1860 when, following the annexation of the Duchy of Savoy, it was dethroned by the Mont Blanc (Alt. 4807 m).   The Vinon-sur-Verdon aeroclub is at the forefront of the picture; center right is the village of Villeneuve.

The use of 3D technology for assessing design maturity and performing assembly simulations is key to large construction projects such as ITER.   After two years of relying on technology installed at the neighbouring CEA Institute for Magnetic Fusion Research (IRFM), the ITER Organization this week celebrated the official inauguration of its own virtual reality room.   The technology was installed at the end of last year in a small annex at the back of the former Headquarters building. Once the new extension to ITER Headquarters is finalized, the equipment will be moved to its permanent location in a dedicated area for virtual reality.    The visualization software, Techviz, enables the design engineers to literally "walk through" the ITER machine and the surrounding Tokamak Complex. The 2.5 x 4 m screen makes cooling water piping, vessel supports and any other plant system or component appear true-to-size. "This is certainly impressive to see and, admittedly, also fun," says Jens Reich, who is managing the design integration of the Tokamak.   "A 3D tool like this is essential from the design integration point of view. It allows us to check the design of mechanical and plant systems or certain construction features. And it allows us to discuss interfaces in front of the big screen directly with the representatives of the different areas. Remote participation of our colleagues in the Domestic Agencies, during review meetings for example, is also foreseen."   And there is another nice feature of this technology: with the help of a special set of target points it is possible to immerse people—virtually—into the corridors and utility shafts, allowing accessibility studies in certain restricted areas.   The annex building containing such sophisticated technology is connected to the Enovia design software which allows the loading of the 3D data directly from the ITER CAD database. Several members from within the Design Integration team are currently undergoing special training in order to operate the technology and to answer to the increasingly frequent requests for the use of this new tool.

The ITER Tokamak seems to be quite a source of inspiration for Lego aficionados. In June 2012, Newsline reported on Japanese artist Sachiko Akinaga who had created an 8,000-piece ITER mockup that was both realistic and naïve, using standard Lego bricks.   A new Lego venture is now creating a lot of excitement within the worldwide fusion community. Another Lego fan is working hard to convince the Lego company to bring the ITER Tokamak into the commercial production line.   Yes—a Lego set that would enable children to build a cutaway section of the ITER Tokamak.   Andrew Clark is an "Environment and Texture Artist" with Firaxis Games, a Baltimore-based game development studio that produced such blockbusters as Sid Meier's Civilization and X:COM Enemy Unknown.   Andrew has done a lot of computer wizardry to model and to "texture" environments such as terrain or skies, but he's retained a nostalgia for the simplicity and the almost unlimited creative potential of Lego bricks.   And recently, as he told Newsline, he "started getting back into it."   "I came across the Lego Cuusoo website," he explains, "which enables people to submit designs that Lego, under certain conditions, can use as a basis for an official Lego set. I started to think of ideas..."   The ITER Project had already attracted Andrew's attention: "The idea that we can create fusion, the process that powers the stars, inspired me strongly. So I visited the ITER website and the internet to gather as much material as I could find."   Baltimore-based artist Andrew Clark is working hard to convince the Lego company to bring the ITER Tokamak into the commercial production line. Andrew first worked with Lego Digital Designer, free software for creating original Lego designs. The next step was to go from virtual to actual, using available bricks and components to create a real Lego construction.   The operation took a whole weekend, plus some tweaking the following Monday. The result was a striking (and beautiful) rendition of the complex arrangement of the modules, piping, ports and feeders that form the central part of the ITER Tokamak.   But now comes the hardest part. While the Lego company encourages users to create original models, it will only consider making them into an "official set" (and in that case launching fabrication and commercialization) once the project has received 10,000 votes of support on the Lego website.   So we all know what we have to do now: go to the Lego Cuusoo site and press the green "Support" button. There's still a long way to go to get to 10,000 votes ... fusion in Lego appears to be as difficult as fusion in real life.

Six members of the Korean National Assembly visited ITER on 7 January, accompanied by the head of the Korean Domestic Agency for ITER, Kijung Jung. After a tour of the construction site, which they qualified as "impressive," the delegates were welcomed by ITER Director-General Osamu Motojima who was pleased to have the chance to thank the delegation members for Korea's contribution to the Project and constant support.

​During a recent visit to the Budker Institute in Novosibirsk, Russia, Paul Thomas, CODAC, Heating & Diagnostics Directorate head from the ITER Organization, signed two Complementary Diagnostics Procurement Arrangements with the Deputy Director General of Rosatom, Vyacheslav Pershukov. The Budker Institute is already heavily engaged in the engineering of diagnostic systems in the vacuum vessel ports following a Procurement Arrangement signed in August 2013.   The year 2014 has been announced as the Year of Fusion by the Russian state corporation Rosatom. Industrial engagement in ITER component manufacturing is ramping up at different locations in Russia; Saint Petersburg will be hosting in June the Fourteenth Meeting of the ITER Council; and in October the 25th Fusion Energy Conference, organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency, will be held in the same city.   Read the full article here.  

​Fusion physicist Alex Meakins has posted some striking photographs of plasmas in MAST, caught before the UK's spherical tokamak shutdown for upgrade. Watch the photographs on Alex Meakins' Twitter account.

​Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) researchers have established the first international 100 gigabits/s connection for German science. It will be the basis of better cooperation in data-intensive sciences in the future. At the SC13 International Supercomputing Conference in Denver, KIT's Steinbuch Centre for Computing (SCC) successfully demonstrated this technology. "As in an orchestra we have now combined the various instruments such that this record speed from end user to end user can be used for the first time in German science," says Professor Dr. Bernhard Neumair, Managing Director of SCC. Interaction of user software and connecting stations was controlled and optimized for this purpose.   The connection is to foster the development of advanced network technologies and to support data-intensive high-end projects, such as the experiments at the LHC in Geneva, at the ITER fusion reactor in France, and in other international programs. Read more on the  PhysOrg website.  

​The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) has released "Star Power," a new informational video that uses dramatic images and thought-provoking interviews to highlight the importance of the laboratory's research into magnetic fusion. Through original music, graphics, live footage and photographs, the video explains fusion, its potential as an abundant renewable energy source and the lab's efforts to harness that energy for widespread use. The video features 19 PPPL members, including Stewart Prager, director of the lab and a Princeton University professor of astrophysical sciences, and a host of additional scientists, engineers and technicians. It also includes individuals outside the lab speaking about fusion, from US President Barack Obama to the actors on the television sitcom "The Big Bang Theory." Read more and watch the video on PPPL website.  

One of the greatest and most versatile scientists of the twentieth century, Hans Bethe (1906-2005), is portrayed in a new biography Nuclear Forces: The Making of the Physicist Hans Bethe by Silvan Schweber. The sheer magnitude of Bethe's scientific accomplishments range across almost every field of theoretical physics; he was probably the last "universalist", a man who could solve virtually any physics problem that came his way. It was at the end of the 1930s that he made his most lasting contribution — an explanation of the origin of the sun's energy generated through nuclear fusion. As Schweber tells us, Bethe was inspired to solve this problem during a conference, working out the essential details in short order. This was one of those puzzles that scientists had grappled with for more than a hundred years and Bethe solved it in a characteristically direct way. For this achievement he was awarded the Nobel Prize. Read the full article at Scientific American.

Dr. Saša Novak, a researcher at the Jožef Stefan Institute (Ljubljana, Slovenia) and an active member of the Slovenian Fusion Association, has been presented with the Zois Award in recognition of her scientific achievements in the field of materials. The Zois Award, awarded annually, is the highest national prize awarded for lifetime achievements in science. The award cited Dr Novak's scientific work on the colloidal processing of composite materials, in particular the achievement of her group in developing a ceramic composite for the first-wall blanket in future fusion reactors. Dr. Novak has been involved in fusion research since the establishment of the Slovenian Fusion Association in 2005. Besides investigating and developing fusion-relevant materials, SiC/SiC and W-based composites, she is also active in the area of public information. She is a member of the Public Information Network (PIN) and a member of the Coordination Team of the Fusion Expo.  --The Zois Award ceremony on 22 November 2013  

​Deuterium oxide has properties that are quite different from light water, the normal water we deal with every day. In general, it will be more dense, have a higher freezing point and boiling point, higher viscosity, higher activity, and most importantly, a higher heat of vaporization and heat of fusion. Check out this chart on Wikipedia to compare the differences. If the change happened suddenly, then there would be all sorts of problems... Read more on Slate website.