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January 2026
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Fusion energy: Progress, partnerships, and the path to deployment
Over the past decade, fusion energy has moved decisively from scientific aspiration toward a credible pathway to a new energy technology. Thanks to long-term federal support, we have significantly advanced our fundamental understanding of plasma physics—the behavior of the superheated gases at the heart of fusion devices. This knowledge will enable the creation and control of fusion fuel under conditions required for future power plants. Our progress is exemplified by breakthroughs at the National Ignition Facility and the Joint European Torus.
M. D. Nornberg, M. W. Bongard, M. T. Borchardt, S. J. Diem, B. A. Kujak-Ford, J. A. Goetz, B. T. Lewicki, J. A. Reusch, C. Rodriguez Sanchez, C. E. Schaefer, A. C. Sontag, J. D. Weberski, G. R. Winz
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 82 | Number 1 | January-February 2026 | Pages 45-55
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2025.2457254
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Developing nonsolenoidal plasma initiation techniques for spherical tokamaks in particular, and tokamaks in general, provides an attractive option for designing fusion energy systems without relying on induction from a central solenoid. The Pegasus-III Experiment is a newly upgraded facility dedicated to developing nonsolenoidal tokamak startup through magnetic helicity injection and microwave injection techniques. The main driver of the upgrade is a new toroidal field (TF) coil and power supply to enable startup demonstrations under conditions similar to larger facilities. Operating the TF coil up to 0.6 T requires adding 10 kW of water cooling to the center stack conductors and monitoring the TF bundle temperature and strain during the current pulse. The chilled water system is designed to minimize copper corrosion from low-conductivity water. Strain gauges and thermocouples are mounted at key locations on the TF coil structure. Their measurements agree with electrothermal heat transfer and stain calculations. The new facility has begun experiments at 0.6 T, demonstrating the startup of a tokamak plasma without a central solenoid.