Tsunami hits north-eastern Japan after massive quake

[GodCubed]

Radio Caesium is lethal too, and has fairly long half lives, so it's a huge worry if it's leaking out somehow.

I really wish they'd release more information, it has all just been a tiny bit of information being released at a time, with scientist's from other country's having to extrapolate and draw conclusions from it.

Presumably anyone who can help has a much better way of accessing the information than we do. I'd hope so anyway.

But the result from venting is only supposed to release Nitrogen-16 which decays rapidly to regular, stable Oxygen.

How rapidly? Not too familiar with it. We talking seconds or hours or longer?

 

[ajt09]

Well, I really need to sleep, as I've been following this all day, and I'm truly hoping that I won't wake to more bad news. Is there a chance, that things could maybe sound worse than they really are, and it could hopefully just be a false alarm, or is the current situation really as bad as it sounds?

 

[Joel`]

Presumably anyone who can help has a much better way of accessing the information than we do. I'd hope so anyway.



How rapidly? Not too familiar with it. We talking seconds or hours or longer?

~5 seconds.

 

[Mike.]

A partial-meltdown has occured in at least one reactor - the fuel melts when it isn't cooled sufficiently to prevent it and it's fairly obvious from the descriptions and events that this is the case here. But you won't see a company or scientist use 'meltdown' as a technical description of that because 'meltdown' really doesn't have a clear definition.

The levels of radioactive material suggest that what is currently outside the containment is a result of the venting to reduce the pressure. It seems like they've vented a second reactor very recently as radiation levels have gone back up again.

My real concern is the number of reactors in a similar situation as it'll stretch Japanese resources to keep on top of things even further - criticisms of the Japanese government and nuclear agencies over lack of information or clarity seems to apply there. One unanswered question I'd love to have answered is actually one for the US government - what exactly was the coolant they rushed to Japan? And which reactor was it used in? That's a real mystery.

The casualties from the Tsunami and earthquake seem to be very understated at the moment - would expect the numbers to rise dramatically as they get to the affected areas.

assuming nothing happens with the reactors, i expect the numbers to go up at least 5 or 6 fold its hard to believe that 10,000 people are just hiding out somewhere, and there is still s much carnage to dig beneath, and have they located the missing train and boat

Radio caesium, we're well into the bad end of the scale now. And there doesnt seem to be a let up in sight

---------- Post added at 07:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 AM ----------

Well, I really need to sleep, as I've been following this all day, and I'm truly hoping that I won't wake to more bad news. Is there a chance, that things could maybe sound worse than they really are, and it could hopefully just be a false alarm, or is the current situation really as bad as it sounds?

as bad as it sounds, it has not been a good day to say the least

 

[Joel`]

Well, I really need to sleep, as I've been following this all day, and I'm truly hoping that I won't wake to more bad news. Is there a chance, that things could maybe sound worse than they really are, and it could hopefully just be a false alarm, or is the current situation really as bad as it sounds?

Too little information to tell. The containment structure should be able to prevent any serious radioactive threat.

---------- Post added at 07:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:56 AM ----------

Anyone seen this? You can see satellite images of the worst areas via Google Earth: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=U...89,140.756836&spn=22.232593,53.569336&t=h&z=5

 

[ajt09]

assuming nothing happens with the reactors, i expect the numbers to go up at least 5 or 6 fold its hard to believe that 10,000 people are just hiding out somewhere, and there is still s much carnage to dig beneath, and have they located the missing train and boat

Radio caesium, we're well into the bad end of the scale now. And there doesnt seem to be a let up in sight

---------- Post added at 07:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 AM ----------


as bad as it sounds, it has not been a good day to say the least

Think the word catastrophic springs to mind. I was just hopeful when earlier they said the radiation levels had dropped, it was under control. It's just so unreal, what sort of damage a wall of water with a quake can do to an entire country and its infrastructure. It just shows how fragile life really is.

and Japanese government just announed partial exposure of fuel rods and partial meltdown.

 

[Zebedee]

But the result from venting is only supposed to release Nitrogen-16 which decays rapidly to regular, stable Oxygen.

That's true only if the core hasn't begun to 'meltdown'. That's why it's fairly evident that a partial-meltdown has happened. Time to worry only when caesium and iodine levels are increasing outside of venting because that will mean containment has totally failed.

 

[Joel`]

That's true only if the core hasn't begun to 'meltdown'. That's why it's fairly evident that a partial-meltdown has happened. Time to worry only when caesium and iodine levels are increasing outside of venting because that will mean containment has totally failed.

Is it official that they've detected Caesium though? Haven't seen it on the BBC yet.

 

[Zebedee]

Is it official that they've detected Caesium though? Haven't seen it on the BBC yet.

NHK world are translating Tepco's last press conference as saying that the core has partially melted. Caesium and iodine have been detected and supplies of iodine are being sent to the areas round reactors. edit: the Caesium and iodine was detected after the first venting, as well as a general increase in radioactive materials at the same time. Think levels fell from c.750 microsieverts per hour down to 70 microsievers per hour within just a few hours after.

 

[ajt09]

Well can say one thing about this thread. I've learned a lot of things I've never known before, and I admit it's been depressing, but it's made me appreciate things I have a lot more. People in Japan will have lost a lot more than I ever have, and like other people have said, it makes me a lot more aware of what I have, and appreciate it. Last time I felt like this was 9/11. Granted, this was caused by nature, but it just makes you realise how precious life is. I really cannot take this in, it's just dumbfounding. The more I see on Sky, the more sad I feel.

 

[Joel`]

NHK world are translating Tepco's last press conference as saying that the core has partially melted. Caesium and iodine have been detected and supplies of iodine are being sent to the areas round reactors. edit: the Caesium and iodine was detected after the first venting, as well as a general increase in radioactive materials at the same time. Think levels fell from c.750 microsieverts per hour down to 70 microsievers per hour within just a few hours after.

70 microsievets per hour is still a really high level though. Some quick napkin Maths and I make it almost a million times higher than average background radiation.

 

[GodCubed]

^ As the official distributor of relatively good news and optimism in this thread, all I can say to that is that normal background radiation is really low.

 

[Joel`]

^ As the official distributor of relatively good news and optimism in this thread, all I can say to that is that normal background radiation is really low.

Scratch that, typed my brackets into Google wrong. XD I thought a million was a tad big.

I now make it 250 times bigger.

 

[Zebedee]

70 microsievets per hour is still a really high level though. Some quick napkin Maths and I make it almost a million times higher than average background radiation.

Yeah, it's still high relative to normal background (more like 300 times than a million - average yearly background is 2-3 millisieverts). But nothing crazy dangerous.

edit: lol seen your post - sorry, site seems to be taking ages to post messages for me.

 

[GodCubed]

Scratch that, typed my brackets into Google wrong. XD I thought a million was a tad big.

I now make it 250 times bigger.

I thought I'd got it completely wrong. I was halfway through doing calculations of my own when I saw your post.

 

[SotK]

0352: The news coming from Japan remains bleak. Government spokesman Yukio Edano: "We do believe that there is a possibility that meltdown has occurred - it is inside the reactor, we can't see. However, we are acting, assuming that a meltdown has occurred and with reactor number 3 we are also assuming the possibility of a meltdown as we carry out measures."

Doesn't sound good...

 

[GodCubed]

Apparently, reactor three is fuelled with uranium and plutonium, which doesn't help matters one bit. If that escapes into the environment that can cause major damage.

 

[IanC]

Just seen the new video of the tsunami on the bbc. Unbelievable power of the sea reclaiming the land.

 

[damian fichardo]

This situation is getting worse by the day, good to see the rest of the world helping out.
It seems that mother nature is ****** off with the way mankind treats the earth

Just hope that estimate of loss of life is blown out of proportion

 

[Mike.]

Two troubling bits of news:

Tania Branigan has spoken to Dr Alexander Densmore from the Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience at Durham University about the risk of aftershocks. The Japanese meteorological agency has warned there is a 70% possibility of a tremor of magnitude 7 or higher in the next three days.

According to Associated Press, Japan's weather agency says a volcano in southern Japan has resumed eruptions of ash. The Meteorological Agency issued a warning saying that Shinmoedake volcano had resumed shooting out gas, boulders and ash after a couple weeks of inactivity. The mountain is on the other side of Japan from the epicenter of Friday's magnitude 8.9 earthquake and resulting tsunami, which devastated much of the country's northeast coast. It was unclear if the eruptions were linked to quake.