The record plasma reached a temperature of 50 million degrees. © L. Godart/CEA
On February 12, 2025, the WEST tokamak at CEA Cadarache in France achieved a groundbreaking milestone in fusion research by sustaining a hydrogen plasma for over 22 minutes —a world record. This surpasses previous achievements, demonstrating significant progress in long-duration plasma control.
The experiment reached temperatures of around 50 million degrees Celsius, mimicking the extreme conditions necessary for fusion reactions. Maintaining such plasmas for extended periods is crucial for future reactors like ITER , which will need to sustain stable plasmas for long times to generate continuous fusion power.
Anne-Isabelle Etienvre, Director of Fundamental Research at the CEA, highlighted the importance of this achievement: “WEST has achieved a new key technological milestone by maintaining hydrogen plasma for more than twenty minutes through the injection of 2 MW of heating power. Experiments will continue with increased power. This excellent result allows both WEST and the French community to lead the way for the future use of ITER.”
WEST benefits from superconducting coils and actively cooled components, allowing for long-duration discharges. The facility serves as a vital testbed for technologies that will be used in ITER and aims to refine plasma stability and heat resistance.
While fusion energy remains a long-term goal unlikely to contribute significantly to the 2050 net-zero target, milestones like this show that scientific and technological progress is steadily bringing the dream closer to reality.