Fukushima Hell Part 9

Well, they're losing control of cooling and one core is in some form meltdown while the other two are in and out of the melting/cooling cycle. If we get a full meltdown and the core burns through the reactor and containment then into the ground the nuclear nightmare begins. With winds shifting to the southwest, Tokyo is at risk.

Is the US at risk? If the radiation is ejected to 30,000 feet, into the jet stream, we will get some radiation. The dosage will be low but if the dosage is continuous for days, weeks, months it is problematic, especially for breeders and children.

Gamma radiation is 30x normal, suggesting that one or more cores is exposed to the atmosphere. Perhaps the shit has already hit the fan.

Fukushima Hell Part 6

The Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has said that a meltdown occurred causing the explosion earlier today. TEPCO says the explosion was the result of the containment being vented, as vented hydrogen reacted with air when released.

If the meltdown is contained in the reactor core it is a mess forever but not dangerous to the public in itself. But if the meltdown breaches the reactor vessel and containment dome then we have a public problem...for a decade or so.

I can understand that facts are hard to come by in the crisis. I also understand that the government doesn't want to further erode public morale or cause a panic. But the facts must be found and communicated to the public. The sooner the better.

Meanwhile...
Kyodo News reports: BREAKING NEWS: Top of MOX fuel rods 3 meters above water at Fukushima plant: TEPCO

The top photo is a MOX fuel rod assembly and the bottom photo is completed fuel rod assemblies in storage. Under water and shutdown.

Nine feet of exposed MOX fuel rods is NOT GOOD!

Fukushima Hell Part 4

The events at the Fukushima complex just get stranger and stranger. The government says an outer building exploded and that the containment and reactor were not damaged. But they also confirmed a partial core meltdown and radioactive materials detected outside the building. Additionally, the company reported that their plan to flood the reactor with seawater would ruin the unit. So they must be desperate to destroy a multibillion yen investment.

Flooding the reactor will take days so this event will linger well into next week or beyond. Like the disaster at the Macondo Prospect last summer, we may never know the truth.

Fukushima Hell Part 3

Well, it's getting worse. All 5 Fukushima reactors are having cooling problems and the government is handing out iodine to help protect the bodies of people near the plants. Caesium has been detected, so we have a reactor vessel breach.

The photo shows Sendai, near Fukushima, before and after the  earthquake. No wonder they're having problems!

Fukushima Hell Part 2

Ok, I'm not a nuclear power expert but here's what I have discovered about the Fukushima problem reactor. The light water reactor is incapable of a fiery explosion like Chernobyl but is capable of releasing radioactive material. The core has overheated, is probably in meltdown and all of the emergency cooling systems have failed.

The containment building was destroyed by a hydrogen leak which exploded on contact with air. TEPCO believes the reactor vessel is intact and is now planning to flood the reactor vessel with seawater to cool the core. If the reactor vessel fails during core meltdown there will be an atmospheric release of radioactive material.

The plant was struck by a 6.0 aftershock. That isn't helping the situation, which seems to be spiraling out of control. Officials are trying to calm the public but I'm unconvinced at their reassurances. The bottom line is, like the earthquake and tsunami, there is not one thing that us humans can do to mitigate a radiation release. The truth would only cause more despair and panic.

Fukushima is located at latitude 38.8N which means the jet stream will dump a continuous, low level dose of radiation over the central US if the core is exposed. Americans won't be dropping dead but the radiation will accumulate and could have negative affects on young adults and children.

Pray for successful seawater cooling. It's all they got now.