The Japanese government is trying to downplay what happened
What has happened at Fukushima #1 is the containment building exploded (they think it was hydrogen gas). The government is assuring pople that the “Reactor” is intact. That may be true. But the contianment building blowing up means all the control systems have been destroyed. The reactor vessel is now going to do whatever it decides it wants to do. Without water and without anything controlling it, what it is going to do is get very very hot. The fuel rods will melt (along with the control rods)… A pile of molten uranium will fall to the concrete floor.
The concrete will melt…. the molten metal will begin to spread out (and down). Unlike the premise of the China Syndrome, it won’t go down indefinitely…. the uranium will dissipate and cool over a period of months, hopefully not breaking through the bottom of the concrete.
***… reports now are indicating a massive radiation leak ***
Where is President Obama?
Okay, some clarification is in order…
Fukushima #1 refers to the complex – the one in the video. There are 6 reactors in that complex Reactors #1, #2, and #6 are the ones made by GE. #1-#1 seems to be the one that blew up – it was the oldest one. Units 4, 5 and 6 were currently shut down for their annual maintenance, so should be safe.
Fukushim #2 is another complex a few miles further south.
So it’s important to know if #1 and #2 is talking about reactor numbers or facility numbers….
According to the info at Wikipedia, they decided to try to cool the plant using sea water (aka Salt Water, which has a higher boiling point and is highly corrosive) I guess that plan didn’t work out so well.
Ed Asner gets the last laugh.
He did an anti-nuke skit on Saturday Night Live… his character was the old guy at the nuclear power plant. As he’s leaving on his final day, he turns to the young people and says “One important thing you must remember – a nuclear power plant can’t have too much water” and leaves.
Then the reactor SCRAMs…. the operators remember the words and start to argue if that means “You must add as much water as possible” or “Be sure you don’t use too much water”….
Cut to Asner – a flash in the distance and he smiles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JrIYR8jArk
I have a cousin who is a nuclear scientist (among another things). He concurs that it was the containment building that blew up and the core is melting down.
Holy S***!
Everything is ok though because Bambi confirmed in his “news conference” yesterday that he “understands Japanese culture” having grown up in Hawaii. What in the H*** does that have to do with this situation?
Maybe he understands seppuku?
知らぬが仏（しらぬがほとけ) [Shiranu ga hotoke] – Not knowing is the Buddha. (Ignorance is bliss).
Some more details…. the business about pumping seawater into the reactors – it’s being done by firetrucks, not the pumps of the reactor. That’s pretty much a last ditch effort to cool the core.
Officials are now handing out iodine tablets to the population to prevent radiation being absorbed in the thyroid glands. Police enforcing the evacuation zone are dressed in full radiation protection outfits. It all looks like things are under control to me and there is nothing to worry about.
The US Aircraft carrier that has no name (the USS Ronald Reagan) is in position in order to operate as a refueling platform for helicopters.
http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2011/03/77230.html
Kyodo News Service reports a total of 6 reactors are still in trouble – Fukushima #1, Reactor 3 is venting radioactive steam
Since there are only 3 active reactors at Fukushima #1, and there are 6 in trouble, the inplication is there are 3 reactors at Fukushima #2 facility that are in trouble (#2 is 7 miles south of #1, also right on the Pacific Ocean).
The city of Fukushima is about 40 km inland from the ocean – it’s on the main north/south transportation corrider on the island. If the evacuation zone expands out that far, it pretty effectively cuts off Northern Japan from the rest of the Island – there are roads further west, but they are low capacity winding mountain roads. The Fukushima #1 evacuation zone is currently at 20 km