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growing interest in fusion technology, which can generate energy without
radioactive waste. With the United States successfully conducting an experiment at the end of last year, it seems that Korea will soon be able to develop an early model of fusion power generation.

Seo Dong-gyun is a reporter.

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Korea's artificial sun at the
Korea Institute of Fusion Energy, aka K-star.

A bluish-purple glow shines into the vacuum vessel in the center.

It is plasma, which is called the fourth state of matter after solid liquid gas, and for nuclear fusion reactions, it must be made above 4 million degrees and maintained for a long time.

Inside this cylinder is a magnet, and plasma is formed by the force of this magnet.

Plasma of over 1 million degrees Celsius is maintained here, generating fusion energy.

Our country has succeeded in maintaining 1 million degree florisma for '1 seconds', the longest time in the world.

The final goal is 30 seconds.

[Yoo Seok-jae/Chairman of the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy: This year, after we changed the inner wall structure (of K-star) from carbon to tungsten material, we are heading towards 300 seconds....]

The government predicts that if "300 million degrees 2026 seconds" is achieved by 1, the possibility of 300-hour fusion power generation will be opened.

Last December, the U.S. became the first in the world to obtain more energy than input in a fusion experiment by firing lasers at hydrogen fuel.

The international fusion experiment reactor in which Korea participates is also expected to use magnetic fields to obtain more energy than input from actual fusion power generation by 24.

[Oh Tae-suk/First Deputy Minister of Science and ICT: I believe that only by preparing step by step from now will we be able to generate electricity using fusion energy in 12.]

Virtually radioactive waste-free dream clean technology 'nuclear fusion'.

Within 2035 years, if it is actually used for energy generation, it will solve the climate crisis and energy shortages.

(Video editing by Hwang Ji-young)