Some 40-and-a-half years after delivering its first plasma pulse on 25 June, 1983, the Joint European Torus (JET) located at Culham, near Oxford, UK, delivered its final pulse, number 105 842, on 18 December.
In 1983 JET was a ground-breaking machine in the field of fusion technology. UK Atomic Energy Authority CEO Prof Sir Ian Chapman, commented: “This is the final milestone in JET’s 40-year history. Those decades of research using JET by dedicated teams of scientists and engineers have played a critical role in accelerating the development of fusion energy.”
JET’s final day of plasma continued to push scientific boundaries, firstly attempting an inverted plasma shape for the first time at Culham before deliberately aiming electrons at the inner wall to improve understanding of beam control and damage mechanisms. The findings of these experiments will support the continuing development of ITER, the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor.
JET will now move on to the next phase of its life cycle in early 2024 for repurposing and decommissioning, which will last until around 2040. UKAEA has set up the STEP programme to deliver a prototype fusion power plant in Nottinghamshire, aiming for 2040.
