8.9 earthquake and tsunami in Japan!

[RadioNate]

If it should meltdown and have a large radiation leak, it would be another Chernobyl situation. It would not be safe for people to live in the area.

Not entirely, these reactors have a containment shell. Chernobyl did NOT have any type of containment structure.

They were also performing an experiment with graphite and carbon which caused the explosion at Chernobyl is was the soot from that experiment and explosion that settled into the environment that made it that much more uninhabitable. Had a nuclear physicist been at Chernobyl at the time they would have known that an explosion was likely. Unqualified electrical engineers blew up Chernobyl while violating Chernobyls' own safety standards.

Chernobyl is a totally unfair comparison.

What happened at the #2 reactor, the rods being briefly exposed is equal to what happened at Three Mile Island.

 

[happygirl]

Does that mean people can't ever go back to that area? I mean, is the radiation just in the air or is it now in the soil?

I don't think I would want to go back, that to big of chance for me to take with my family

 

[snarlingcoyote]

I don't think I would want to go back, that to big of chance for me to take with my family

Don't ever visit New England or go through Union Station or fly then. . .you do know you're being exposed to radiation in those places, right?

Seriously though. . .What chance?

 

[happygirl]

Don't ever visit New England or go through Union Station or fly then. . .you do know you're being exposed to radiation in those places, right?

Seriously though. . .What chance?

I won't Radiation

 

[Jennasis]

CNN reporting that the fuel rods in one of the reactors are reportedly fully exposed.

Blast heard at number two reactor.

 

[golfgal]

There was an nuclear expert on CNN late last night. He said that this is a whole new ballgame. In the past, we've only dealt with one reactor in trouble at a time. This time we have multiple and one has a different type of nuclear material than the others.

He said that he is not incredibly worried and he lives in California, however, he said that this is a situation that needs to be monitored very closely because we just don't have enough past experience to understand what the fallout can do. Apparently, animals died in Scandinavia after Chernobyl.

If the winds blow to the east, at least there is a good deal of ocean between Japan and the next land mass, but radiation doesn't just go away. It has to go somewhere and it takes a long time for the danger to pass.

He said that he thinks they should be moving people at least 100 miles away from the reactors instead of the 40 miles they are now moving them. Also, no one has ever tried sea water before to cool a reactor because it ruins it. They don't know what the effect will be.

Pretty creepy stuff.

I was wondering if that was a good thing or a bad thing with nothing for the particles to "stick" to over the ocean?? The thing with Hawaii is -where are you going to go if something DOES happen??

 

[Jennasis]

Confirmed explosion in reactor 2.

 

[MagicKingdom05]

Confirmed explosion in reactor 2.

Just read it on CNN when I got home. I know it was wishful thinking, but I was actually hoping that they had turned the corner and that the situation was getting better not worse.

[7:17 p.m. ET Monday, 8:17 a.m. Tuesday in Tokyo] More information about the new blast at the ***ushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan: An "explosive impact" occurred Tuesday morning at the No. 2 reactor, a day after a hydrogen explosion rocked reactor No. 3, the plant's owner announced.

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/03/14/japan-quake-live-blog-rescuers-from-all-over-pitch-in-to-help/

 

[RadioNate]

Just read it on CNN. I'm sure I'm reading to much into what is being said, but I wonder exactly what explosive impact means exactly.

[7:17 p.m. ET Monday, 8:17 a.m. Tuesday in Tokyo] More information about the new blast at the ***ushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan: An "explosive impact" occurred Tuesday morning at the No. 2 reactor, a day after a hydrogen explosion rocked reactor No. 3, the plant's owner announced.

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/03/14/japan-quake-live-blog-rescuers-from-all-over-pitch-in-to-help/

#2 hadn't had a hydrogen steam explosion yet like #1 & #3 so hopefully it is "only" that. Hopefully all the containment shells are intact. They are reporting #2s may be damaged. Very bad!

 

[golfgal]

So this is 3 explosions now, right?

 

[MagicKingdom05]

So this is 3 explosions now, right?

Yep. The first two explosions were caused by the hydrogen build up, but this one sounds much worse especially if they are now saying that the containment shell of #2 was damaged by it.

 

[Jennasis]

I heard that officials think the containment shell is damaged/compromised.

 

[MagicKingdom05]

I heard that officials think the containment shell is damaged/compromised.

Yep. That's what the news is saying as well.

An "explosive impact" occurred Tuesday morning at the No. 2 reactor at the ***ushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan, a day after a hydrogen explosion rocked another reactor, the plant's owner said. Pressure readings indicated some damage to the containment structure of the No. 2 reactor, it added.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/14/japan.disaster/index.html?hpt=T1

 

[Feralpeg]

Not entirely, these reactors have a containment shell. Chernobyl did NOT have any type of containment structure.

They were also performing an experiment with graphite and carbon which caused the explosion at Chernobyl is was the soot from that experiment and explosion that settled into the environment that made it that much more uninhabitable. Had a nuclear physicist been at Chernobyl at the time they would have known that an explosion was likely. Unqualified electrical engineers blew up Chernobyl while violating Chernobyls' own safety standards.

Chernobyl is a totally unfair comparison.

What happened at the #2 reactor, the rods being briefly exposed is equal to what happened at Three Mile Island.

Okay. Let me rephrase. What I meant by a large radiation leak was if the containment failed. If they lose containment we could be looking at more contamination. Unfortunately, it looks like this could be taking place.

 

[SaraJayne]

They are also evacuating workers...leaving 50 behind.

The fact they are evacuating workers means more to me than anything else. It's obviously a crisis situation at this point...

 

[MagicKingdom05]

Okay. Let me rephrase. What I meant by a large radiation leak was if the containment failed. If they lose containment we could be looking at more contamination. Unfortunately, it looks like this could be taking place.

That's the problem, nobody is able to get close to it to be sure, but this is a telling sign (from MSNBC)

Radiation levels in the air surrounding the plant have risen four-fold after a fresh explosion at the site on Tuesday, the plant operator said.

The radiation reading at 08:31am local time (2331 GMT) climbed to 8,217 microsieverts an hour from 1,941 about 40 minutes earlier, Tokyo Electric Power Co said

 

[MagicKingdom05]

They are also evacuating workers...leaving 50 behind.

The fact they are evacuating workers means more to me than anything else. It's obviously a crisis situation at this point...

Can you imagine if you are one of the 50 who are asked to stay, how you are feeling at this point.

 

[MagicKingdom05]

CNN is now saying that they are being told that there is now a fire in reactor number 4. I guess the one good thing to come from this is that the winds are blowing out to sea and not inland.

 

[rainy~daze]

CNN is now saying that they are being told that there is now a fire in reactor number 4. I guess the one good thing to come from this is that the winds are blowing out to sea and not inland.

But what are the effects of the radiation on sea animals and other wildlife?

 

[dismom2]

But what are the effects of the radiation on sea animals and other wildlife?

And I wonder how far this toxic stuff can travel? How long do the effects last?
This is terrible!