‘Artificial Sun’ on Earth reaches record 100 million degrees temperature
The ‘artificial sun’ on earth has set a new world record. You must have been surprised to read where is the sun on earth? Even so, how did it make a record? Is there really a sun on Earth? If so how did it reach such astounding temperatures?Where is the ‘artificial Sun’ on our planet? To know all about these questions read below.
The ‘sun on Earth’ is The Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research – KSTAR. It recently maintained a temperature of 100 million degrees Celsius for 20 seconds. That is why it has set a new world record. This is a plasma campaign of KSTAR Research Center.
The KSTAR Research Center at the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy (KFE), in collaboration with Seoul National University (SNU) and Columbia University of the United States, developed the temperature of this sun on Earth at 100 million degrees Celsius and maintained it for 20 seconds. This is called plasma operation.
In comparison to the year 2019, this time the sun on the earth operated 8 seconds more plasma. It is also the first time that the plasma ion temperature of this artificial sun has reached 100 million degrees Celsius. To do this, scientists placed hydrogen isotopes inside the fusion device of KSTAR.
When the fusion reaction began, the isotopes separated the ions and electrons. The ions started heating up. After that it was brought to 100 million degrees Celsius. However, scientists could not control this temperature of the plasma in the fusion device for long, so they had to stop this process.
Director of the KSTAR Research Center Si-woo Yoon said that we will need many new technologies and materials to work continuously at 100 million degrees Celsius. The success of KSTAR is critical for high performance plasma operations in the future. Because of this, we can get many benefits related to nuclear power in future.
Professor Yong Su Na of Seoul National University said that ‘the success of this experiment will bring a solution to study the difficulties encountered while working in high temperatures. Will help in development of new technologies related to nuclear fusion energy.’
The KSTAR Research Center started the plasma generation work in August last year. They plan to complete 110 plasma experiments by December 10 next year. The research center is planning to bring the ion temperature to 100 million degrees Celsius for 30 seconds by the year 2025. If this experiment is successful, then people will get solution to energy related problems.
