Japan Nuclear Coverage

[maiforpeace]

In light of the immediate health risks like the lack of clean drinking water, food, shelter and health care, it's hard to imagine that a nuclear threat only poses a secondary risk presently.

Those poor, poor people.

[Mysturji]

TMNT

That's a water vole hiding up a turtle's arse saying "Is it safe to come out yet?"

[SPMaximus]

[Coito ergo sum]

SOMA, Japan – Dangerous levels of radiation leaking from a crippled nuclear plant forced Japan to order 140,000 people to seal themselves indoors Tuesday after an explosion and a fire dramatically escalated the crisis spawned by a deadly tsunami.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_japan_earthquake

[Thumpalumpacus]

Will head-pressure alone achieve the requisite GPM to provide efficient cooling?

eta: Never mind, answer was buried in the thread. Found it.

[Coito ergo sum]

Radiation plume could reach Tokyo: U.S. scientists
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/ ... WX20110315

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Radiation plume could reach Tokyo: U.S. scientists
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/ ... WX20110315

Yawn. If it's detectable at all I'll be impressed.

[Coito ergo sum]

France's Nuclear Safety Authority said the disaster now equated to a six on the seven-point international scale for nuclear accidents, ranking the crisis second only in gravity to Chernobyl.

Europe's energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger dubbed the nuclear disaster an "apocalypse", saying Tokyo had almost lost control of events at the Fukushima power plant.

"There is talk of an apocalypse and I think the word is particularly well chosen," he said in remarks to the European Parliament.

Japan however maintained its assessment of the disaster at a four, placing it behind the Three Mile Island accident in the United States in 1979.

http://news.brisbanetimes.com.au/breaki ... 1bw5o.html

I love how the Japanese want to characterize this as "not as bad as three mile island." Not one single person died as a result of the Three Mile Island incident. At tThree Mile Island, one of two reactors lost its coolant, which caused overheating and partial meltdown of its uranium core. Some radioactive water and gases were released. Nobody was exposed. Nobody died. In the face of a core meltdown, the pressure vessel held and there was no breach of the plant's containment structure. Only "tiny amounts of the most dangerous forms of volatile radiation escaped to the atmosphere" http://www.thebulletin.org/web-edition/ ... ile-island


Read more: Nuclear and Chemical Accidents — Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001457. ... z1Gh0Gyukw

[maiforpeace]

France's Nuclear Safety Authority said the disaster now equated to a six on the seven-point international scale for nuclear accidents, ranking the crisis second only in gravity to Chernobyl.

Europe's energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger dubbed the nuclear disaster an "apocalypse", saying Tokyo had almost lost control of events at the Fukushima power plant.

"There is talk of an apocalypse and I think the word is particularly well chosen," he said in remarks to the European Parliament.

Japan however maintained its assessment of the disaster at a four, placing it behind the Three Mile Island accident in the United States in 1979.

How does France and the energy commissioner know this?

[Svartalf]

Like everybody else, they shoot their mouth off to prevent flies from getting sucked in.

Seriously, the commish has a serious case of foot in mouth, saying that at the current stage... it may reach that point, but unless a 50 km radius around the plant is turned to uninhabitable irradiated wasteland, that's a gross hyperbole.
As for the NSA guy, I guess he's stating how far it has progressed, given the current prognosis.

[Warren Dew]

Radiation plume could reach Tokyo: U.S. scientists
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/ ... WX20110315

Some Tokyo suburbs are already reporting elevated radiation levels, albeit not at dangerous levels yet.

How does France and the energy commissioner know this?

France's estimate of a "6" on the 7 point scale is based on having read my estimate in a post upthread, I'm sure. They're also feeling cocky because France's liquid metal cooled design is the only major commercial reactor design that hasn't had a core meltdown yet, thus the use of the exaggeration "apocalypse".

However, on rereading the the definitions of that 7 point nuclear accident scale, it appears that TMI should actually be a "3" or below rather than a "5", since "4" and above involve deaths. That means Fukushima might end up being a "5" instead of a "6".

Sorry about that, France's Nuclear Safety Authority. Oh, and your Superphenix design is next. Have fun with your highly flammable sodium coolant!

[Geoff]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12745899

Germany has temporarily shut down seven of its nuclear power plants while it reconsiders its nuclear strategy.

[Svartalf]

I just hope for them we don't get another cold snap...

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Partial Meltdowns Led to Hydrogen Explosions at Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant From SciAm.

[beige]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12745899

Germany has temporarily shut down seven of its nuclear power plants while it reconsiders its nuclear strategy.

What the hell?

Is this just a case of "shit people are suddenly scared of nuclear stuff, so we'll look like we're doing something"?