Control room progressively equipped
In the “room that will be seen around the world,” as former ƽ Deputy Head of the Construction Project Tim Luce put it when the ƽ main control room issued its first command three months ago, 30 operator stations are now equipped with keyboards, mice and computer screens.
In late May/early June, once final power and HVAC are delivered, the temporary control rooms distributed over the site will be folded into this central “nerve centre,” tasked with monitoring the millions of plasma, tokamak and plant system parameters contributing to ƽ operation.
The present configuration, seen here from the second-floor visitors gallery, will cover ƽ's needs for the coming seven to eight years. In the early 2030s, as tokamak operation ramps up, some 50 stations will be added and the two large composite screens will be replaced by a 120-square-metre mosaic of screens covering the better part of the wall facing the operators. Raising their eyes from their individual computer screens, operators will be able to take in every beat and pulse of the entire ƽ installation.