Scientists from 30 countries, including India, are gearing up to assemble the world’s most powerful magnet to advance the global nuclear fusion project. The United States has completed and tested the final component, the central solenoid, and assembly is now in progress.

The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), based in southern France, is designed to generate clean energy by fusing atoms at extremely high temperatures. Despite several delays, ITER is backed by major powers such as the U.S., China, Japan, Russia, and the European Union.

To contain the super-hot plasma needed for fusion, ITER employs powerful superconducting magnets, acting as an invisible cage to trap the plasma particles. This fusion process, which powers stars like the Sun, combines light atomic nuclei such as deuterium and tritium to release massive energy.

The ITER Tokamak, the world’s largest fusion device, is crucial in achieving this process. Construction, delayed from its original completion date in 2021, is now moving at its fastest pace in history. ITER aims to begin generating plasma in 2033.

India has been an integral part of the ITER project since 2005, contributing research, in-kind deliveries, and funding. During his February visit to France, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alongside President Emmanuel Macron, met with scientists and engineers at the ITER facility, underscoring the global collaboration.