Moonshot R&D Program Goal 10: Fusion Energy

Moonshot Goal 10 is part of Japan's Moonshot Research and Development Program, managed by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). Its goal: a dynamic society in harmony with the global environment and free from resource constraints, through diverse applications of fusion energy, by 2050.

The program backcasts from 2050 to identify the issues fusion must solve before deployment, and aims for disruptive innovation across fields. The Program Director is Prof. Zensho Yoshida (University of Tokyo).

Funded projects include accelerator-based high-intensity neutron sources (RIKEN), high-temperature superconducting magnets (Kyushu University), digital twin systems (NIFS), muon-catalyzed fusion (Chubu University), mathematical modeling (Waseda), superconducting dipole devices (University of Tokyo), isotope separation for compact fuel cycles (Shinshu University), compact breeding blankets (QST), and laser fusion using optical enhancement cavity and blue-violet semiconductor lasers (Osaka and others).

Project managers are selected through JST's open calls; researchers at universities, national labs and companies in Japan lead projects. Details are set in each call.

JST selects project managers through periodic open calls (projects were selected in FY2024 and later). No open call is currently listed on the Goal 10 page.

• Multi-year government R&D funding for ambitious fusion projects.
• Collaboration across Japan's fusion research community under a Program Director.

Target year 2050. Projects selected from FY2024 onward. No open call listed.

At least nine projects are funded, spanning neutron sources, superconducting magnets, digital systems, muon-catalyzed fusion, isotope separation, breeding blankets and laser fusion.