Preparing for the Big Lift
Channel: iterorganization
Date: 2022-05-09

On Thursday 5 May, the first sector module of the ITER plasma chamber was lifted a mere 50 centimetres above its supports. What made this first-of-a-kind operation particularly delicate was the nature of the load (a 1,380-tonne, 18-metre tall assembly) and the extreme precision its handling required.  In both height and distance it represented only a fraction of what the actual operation, scheduled in the coming days, will require.