Subheader Icon 877-412-3651
Request a quote
Article Experimental Fusion Reactor Reaches Temperature of the Sun Image

Researchers from Tokomak Energy in the U.K. are claiming a new milestone in thermonuclear fusion. They were able to achieve plasma temperatures in a fusion reactor, known as the ST40 device, hotter than the sun’s core for the first time — reaching 15 million degrees Celsius (59 million degrees Fahrenheit).

It’s a big achievement and is a key step toward the generation of limitless clean energy

Tokamak Energy researchers at a facility in Oxfordshire are attempting to build an affordable fusion reactor to supply the U.K. grid with fusion power by 2030. Tokamak Energy is a privately funded company.

Nuclear fusion is a process that involves the collision of atomic nuclei, which fuse together to form helium atoms. The whole process results in the release of fantastic amounts of energy. This is the same process that powers stars. If we can recreate this process on Earth, we would be able to generate huge amounts of clean energy with no harmful byproducts, such as carbon dioxide emissions or the radioactive waste generated by nuclear fission reactions.

Just one tablespoon of liquid hydrogen fuel can generate as much energy as 28 tons of coal

Scientists consider this achievement to be a big step. Their ultimate goal, however, is to heat the high-energy gas to 100 million degrees Celsius (212 million degrees Fahrenheit).

“We are taking significant steps towards achieving fusion energy, doing so with the agility of a private venture, driven by the goal of achieving something that will have huge benefits worldwide,” said CEO Jonathan Carling.

“Reaching 15 million degrees is yet another indicator of the progress at Tokamak Energy and a further validation of our approach. Our aim is to make fusion energy a commercial reality by 2030. We view the journey as a series of engineering challenges, raising additional investment on reaching each new milestone.”

Related Articles

Latest Sandia Researchers Develop Faster Method to Evaluate Heat-Shield Materials Image
Aerospace

Sandia Researchers Develop Faster Method to Evaluate Heat-Shield Materials

Engineers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a method to more rapidly evaluate heat-shield materials used on hypersonic vehicles. The work was carried out as part of a three-year research project that combined computer modeling, laboratory testing, and flight experiments. Heat shields, formally known as thermal protection systems, are used to protect vehicles from extreme heat and p

Latest G20 Critical Minerals Framework Sets Out Path for African Processing and Jobs Image
Industry News

G20 Critical Minerals Framework Sets Out Path for African Processing and Jobs

Africa holds more than half the world’s cobalt, nearly 48% of its manganese, and roughly a fifth of its natural graphite. It also sits on significant reserves of copper, nickel, lithium, and platinum group metals. Yet most of these minerals leave the continent in raw or semi-processed form, only to return as finished clean energy products made elsewhere. A new framework developed under South Af

Latest General Galactic Plans October Launch to Test Water-Only Satellite Propulsion Image
Aerospace

General Galactic Plans October Launch to Test Water-Only Satellite Propulsion

Space startup General Galactic is preparing to fly a 500 kg (1,100 lb) satellite powered entirely by water. The company has booked a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare slot for October 2026 to carry out the demonstration, called Trinity. General Galactic was co-founded by CEO Halen Mattison, a former SpaceX engineer, and CTO Luke Neise, a Varda Space veteran. Their satellite will carry a single tank of

Latest NASA Funds Hypersonic Flight-Test Studies With Two New Awards Image
Aerospace

NASA Funds Hypersonic Flight-Test Studies With Two New Awards

NASA has awarded contracts worth a combined $1.7 million to two companies to study how their existing vehicles could support reusable hypersonic flight testing. The work sits under NASA’s Hypersonic Technology Project, part of the agency’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program. SpaceWorks Enterprises of Atlanta, Georgia, received $500,000 to examine its X-60 platform. Stratolaunch of Mojave, California