Researchers hope nuclear fusion device, Artificial Sun could provide almost limitless clean energy.
In its latest experiment on Thursday, the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), which is called the Chinese "Artificial Sun", achieved a continuous high-temperature plasma operation for 1,056 seconds.
EAST is an experimental superconducting tokamak magnetic fusion energy reactor in Hefei, which is the capital of east China's Anhui Province. EAST has the internal designation HT-7U.
The duration of operation of EAST in its latest experiment is the longest time of operation for a magnetic fusion energy reactor, according to a statement issued by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. EAST has been in operation since 2006, with the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science conducting the experiment for the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Gong Xianzu, a researcher at the Institute of Plasma Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), announced the breakthrough on Friday. Xianzu is in charge of the experiment. Raw materials required for the Chinese "Artificial Sun" are almost unlimited on Earth, unlike fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas, which endanger the environment.