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News & Media

Also in this issue

  • ITER Members are involved broadly in the in-kind procurement for ITER, sharing responsibility for the fabrication of components and systems. Participating in ITER also means reinforcing the scientific, technological and industrial base in fusion back at home. (Note: not all components and contributions could be reproduced here.)

    The world's largest Erector Set

    Compared to the ITER Tokamak, a space shuttle, an aircraft carrier and a nuclear submarine are all relatively simple objects: their technologies are well teste [...]

    Read more

  • José Manuel Barroso, the President of the European Commission,  is convinced that the future of Europe is in science and innovation. On 11 July 2014, he visited ITER to reaffirm Europe's commitment to ITER.

    Europe's Barroso: "Proud to have believed in ITER"

    In the official photo of the ITER Agreement—signed at the Elysée Palace in Paris on 21 November 2006—he occupies the place of honour at French President Jacque [...]

    Read more

  • The concrete employed at ITER plays a double role—guaranteeing structural integrity as well as nuclear safety. Whether its formulation is ordinary or exceptional, the concrete is the object of control and verification at each stage of its elaboration and implementation.

    A concrete for every purpose

    Gravel, sand, cement, water and sometimes an additive ... at first glance, concrete seems like a simple material. But not at ITER, where construction follows s [...]

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  • The European tokamak JET, enhanced with an ITER-like wall and divertor, is getting ready to renew experiments with a 50-50 mix of deuterium and tritium.

    T-time for JET

    In operational tokamaks around the world, plasmas are heated every day to temperatures that reach tens of thousands, or even millions, of degrees Celsius. Run [...]

    Read more

Mag Archives

A jewel in its concrete box

Deep into the ITER servers lays the huge data bank, constantly updated, that forms the 3D blueprint of the whole installation. Digging into this "detailed model", one can create ultra-precise renditions of any part of the machine, systems or buildings — down to the smallest pipe, nut and bolt.
 
Not everybody, however, needs such a high level of details. A designer working on, say, in-wall shielding or assembly tooling, needs to have a clear picture of the environment his components will fit in — but not necessarily with the resolution the "detailed model" can provide.
 
The ''simplified models'' that Lauris Honoré creates from the huge ITER data bank are terrific pedagogical and communication tools, revealing what the installation is really like, in all its beauty and complexity. (Click to view larger version...)
The ''simplified models'' that Lauris Honoré creates from the huge ITER data bank are terrific pedagogical and communication tools, revealing what the installation is really like, in all its beauty and complexity.
What he needs is 3D data that is sufficiently detailed but light enough to be handled by his workstation. What he needs is something simplified. And Lauris Honoré, a young designer who's been with ITER for 6 years already, is here to provide it.
 
Simplified models have a value that reaches well beyond the technical needs of ITER. They are terrific pedagogical and communication tools, revealing what the installation is really like, in all its beauty and complexity.
 
Lauris has developed a talent for these spectacular, colourful renditions. "I add texture, colours, brilliance, put a little man here and there to give a sense of scale... the drawing must be both technically impeccable and visually pleasing."
 
The Tokamak Complex rendition that we publish today (a much reduced version of the original) is a perfect illustration of this approach: here's the heart of the installation, densely packed with systems and devices — a fabulous machine and encased in concrete like a jewel in its box.