A common but oversimplistic way of describing fusion is claiming that it's all about reproducing the nuclear reactions that occur in the core of the Sun. In a presentation to non-specialists on 18 January, ITER Director-General Pietro Barabaschi explained why, supposing we could mimic what happens in the Sun, such an undertaking would be totally "useless." The reasons he gave, and the images, parallels and comparisons he used, are what made his presentation particularly illuminating and enjoyable. In terms of "volumetric power density," a key concept when dealing with energy issues, the Sun and Sun-like stars are very poor, very slow, and very inefficient systems. One cubic metre of the Sun's core generates about as much power as the chemical reactions inside an equivalent volume of manure—something in the range of 250 to 300 watts per cubic metre (W/m³), or much less than a human body (1 kW/m³). Hummingbirds, which hold the record of power density among living organisms, generate 50 kW/m³—that is, 200 times the performance of the proton-proton reactions inside the Sun. However, poor performance as a fusion reactor combined with giant size (333,000 Earth masses) is what makes the Sun what it is: a giant furnace that has been dispensing light and heat to for 4.6 billion years and will continue for another 5 billion years. Provided one finds pertinent images and analogies, fusion on Earth can be relatively easily explained to non-specialists (with the notable exception of a few quantum phenomena, which according to the ITER Director-General "no one really understands"). Take the probability of deuterium fusing with tritium in a fusion machine, measured against that of hydrogen nuclei in a proton-proton chain. If the probability was a section (and in fact it is, it's called the cross section) deuterium-tritium's section would be comparable to that of the Moon and proton-proton the size of a virus. Energy confinement time, one of the biggest challenges in tokamak physics? Like adding blanket on a cold winter night in order to preserve body heat. (Except that there is no turbulence in bed covers, whereas there is quite a lot in fusion plasmas ... and that's a big issue.) Then, there is the analogy of the wood-fired pizza oven which, like a tokamak cannot be too small (otherwise confinement is too weak and wood ignition will not occur) or too large (or else the surface power density would be excessive and lead to a carbonized pizza effect). Finding the right balance between size and power density is another considerable challenge that fusion R&D is facing and partly explains, from the ITER Director-General's perspective, why "fusion is taking so long." Equations, plots and graphs were not absent from the hour-long presentation. Combined with paradoxes and amusing illustrations, it brought home to everyone present, both in the ITER amphitheatre and by remote connection, the most essential notion about fusion: not mimicking the Sun but tackling daunting issues which, helped by the progress of computer modelling in the coming decades, will make it an industrial reality. Click here to view the recording of the presentation.

Since late 2022, these Monaco-ITER Postdoctoral Fellows have been working alongside ITER specialists on topics of particular importance to the ITER Research Plan. Ekaterina, Xue, Guillaume, and Guillermo were recruited during the eighth Monaco-ITER Postdoctoral Fellowship campaign in 2022 and will be completing their two-year positions in 2024. During a conversation in December, the Fellows reported that the best part of the Monaco-ITER Postdoctoral Fellowship experience was being involved in cutting-edge plasma physics research with some of the top specialists in the field and having the opportunity to present research work to the international community. Deeply immersed in their individual projects, however, the process of looking for their next positions —whether in academia or the private sector—will necessarily occupy some of the year ahead. "If there is one thing that young fusion professionals look for, after a decade of itinerancy, is to find stability in an institute, organization, or private sector company," they agreed. The four Monaco-ITER Postdoctoral Fellows are currently advancing research in the Science Division on topics that will be critical to the updated ITER Research Plan. Xue Bai, from China, ​is interested in a plasma's response to intrinsic and applied 3D fields. Her work to model and optimize the 3D fields applied by the ITER ELM control coils and error field correction coils will contribute to the effective application of the ELM control schemes in ITER while minimizing detrimental effects on plasma performance. (ELMs, or Edge Localized Modes, are energetic bursts of energy and particles that escape from the magnetic field surrounding the plasma and cause a loss of energy.) Guillaume Brochard, from France, studies the physics of energetic particles with a particular focus on turbulence and MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) instabilities. Burning plasmas on the scale of ITER have never been observed before; Guillaume works on developing realistic energetic particle distributions in ITER plasmas and uses specific codes to analyze the stability and nonlinear evolutions of plasma scenarios that are part of the ITER Research Plan to improve non-inductive heating and fusion performance by reducing anomalous transport. Ekaterina Matveeva, from Russia, focuses on experimental studies of disruptions in tokamaks. At ITER, she is contributing to the physics basis of the ITER disruption mitigation system by analyzing and assessing experimental data received from various tokamaks around the world that perform shattered pellet injection experiments. (Shattered pellet injection is a technique that pre-empts plasma disruptions by releasing a spray of frozen deuterium-neon pellets into a plasma.) Guillermo Suárez López, from Spain, specializes in ion cyclotron radiofrequency (ICRF) heating, MHD theory and transport in fusion plasmas. He is performing integrated transport simulations at ITER and contributing to the development of a high-fidelity plasma simulator, with the aim of making more accurate estimations and enhancements of ITER's plasma performance. The principal motivation of the Monaco-ITER fellowships is to develop excellence in fusion science and technology research and to contribute to forming the fusion workforce of the future. Under the terms of a Partnership Arrangement signed between the ITER Organization and the Principality in 2008, and renewed in 2018 for 10 years, Monaco funds up to five fellowships every two years for two-year terms. The recruitment campaign for 2024-2026 Monaco Fellows launched on 15 January 2024. See all information in this article.

In today's digital age, everything we do online is exposed to cyber risks. Cyberattacks can compromise our personal data, our professional work at the ITER Organization, but also ITER networks, data and even its industrial and control systems. That is why cybersecurity is not just a task for experts, but a shared commitment for all. Cybersecurity month is a worldwide initiative designed to spotlight the importance of digital safety. For the second year now, the ITER IT Security team has joined this global effort with a dedicated in-house cybersecurity awareness campaign. "Cybermonth is a unique opportunity to empower our users and remind them of the importance of cybersecurity within the ITER Project and also in their personal lives," says Romain Bourgue, in charge of IT Security at the ITER Organization. "The campaign was designed as a series of engaging and interactive games, covering a range of topics that reflect the current threats and challenges in the cybersecurity domain." To achieve widespread participation, IT Security implemented a new approach by gamifying the 2023 Cybermonth campaign around issues that the team considered crucial. "We wanted to focus on aspects and threats that the IT Security team deals with on a day-to-day basis and that we want everyone to be aware of. By educating users on how to recognize and avoid these cyberattack tactics, we aim to enhance the security of both professional and personal digital interactions."  One of the activities featured in the campaign was an escape room scenario, where users could save the tokamak from imminent destruction by unlocking the central computer using a password and a second factor of authentication. Success was achieved by solving various security-related puzzles scattered throughout the room. One of the main focuses was social engineering—a malicious technique that exploits human factors to manipulate users into divulging sensitive information or performing malicious actions. Greed and fear are often used to make people act irrationally, for example by provoking them to give out their credentials by promising a discount or getting them to click on a link that claims their account has been hacked. The campaign was not only informative, but also entertaining and rewarding. Users could track their progress and compete to be part of a Hall of Fame, adding a touch of fun and excitement to the educational campaign. "It was a real challenge to balance entertainment and substance—raising awareness in an amusing way without diluting the underlying message. But cybersecurity awareness really can be fun and effective," says Maria Mitoi, one of the team members responsible for designing the activities. Congratulations to the 2023 cybersecurity heroes! In the end, every participant secured a victory, at least in the form of valuable knowledge... The results of the campaign were impressive, with a high level of participation and positive feedback from the users. The campaign demonstrated ITER's commitment to cybersecurity and reinforced the idea that it is a shared responsibility for everyone.  "Cybersecurity is not just a priority; it's a team effort," concludes Romain Bourgue, who is looking forward to next year for another impactful Cybermonth.