Video reveals giant reactor with magnets the size of a 747

It is being hailed as the 'holy grail' of energy - a device that could realise the dream of create limitless supplies of power.  The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (Iter) will be the world's largest tokamak nuclear fusion reactor when it's complete in 2019.

But its construction is proving a challenge. 

A team of engineers in France is currently grappling with building the massive device, which has magnets that weigh as much as a Boeing 747.
A video released by the European Space Agency this week shows just how complex each component of the tokamak reactor is.

Fusion works by using two kinds of hydrogen atoms — deuterium and tritium — and injecting that gas into a containment vessel.
Scientist then add energy that removes the electrons from their host atoms, forming what is described as an ion plasma, which releases huge amounts of energy.

If the technique is perfected, it would provide an inexhaustible source of power and potentially solve the world's energy crisis.
ITER uses a strong electric current to trap plasma inside a doughnut-shaped device long enough for fusion to take place.

The device, known as a tokamak, was conceived by Soviet physicists in the 1950s. But it's proving tough to build, and could be even tougher to operate. Iter nuclear engineers have recruited rocket scientists to help create super-strong materials that can withstand temperatures hotter than the sun. The Iter team claim a technique for building launcher and satellite components has turned out to be the best way for constructing rings to support the powerful magnetic coils inside the machine. (by  ELLIE ZOLFAGHARIFARD, The Daily Mail)