New world record in science: in search of hydrogen Dorado
A successful test just set a new world record and provided a huge step in the quest for fusion power, which could provide unlimited, clean energy.
France recently set a new world record by maintaining a plasma reaction for over 22 minutes. This is a significant advancement in the quest for commercial fusion power, which could provide unlimited, clean energy for everyone, forever.
What maintaining a plasma reaction could mean
The record was set at the Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA) WEST Tokamak reactor on February 12. Creating a practical fusion reactor is difficult because it requires extremely high temperatures, pressure, and even more tricky, the perfect conditions so that it can produce more energy than is being put into it.
Getting the atoms to fuse is not so difficult, but creating a self-sustaining fusion reaction is. It requires temperatures of between 180-270 million degrees Farenheit and a pressure of five to 10 atmospheres at the point of reaction. Then, the plasma reaction should be maintained for at least 10 seconds.
The CEA didn’t manage just 10 seconds - they held the reactio for 1,337 seconds, beating China’s record in January 2025 (1,066 seconds) by 25%.
This is HUGE
— Dr Singularity (@Dr_Singularity) February 19, 2025
France has just sustained a fusion reaction for more than 22 minutes, breaking China's record (from few weeks ago) of 18 minutes. The CEA’s WEST machine was able to maintain a plasma for 1,337 seconds.
There’s a revolution happening right now. This breakthrough is… pic.twitter.com/EQYPHZ5mpg
Not only did they sustain the reaction, but France’s test did so without damaging the reactor’s components. The CEA said their next step will be to create reactions that could combine for several hours, with increasingly higher temperatures.
The information collected from the tests performed at the WEST Tokamak reactor will be used to improve future fusion reactors, like the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project in France, which aims to make fusion power a reality.
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