Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8378573/Japan-earthquake-fear-of-worse-nuclear-power-plant-accident-puts-Tokyo-under-a-cloud.html Tokyo, at least, appeared to have got away without the scale of casualties seen in other parts of Japan. That was before news of an explosion, and warnings of a possible "meltdown", at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. As the evening turned to night, the world's second-largest metropolis was still waiting to know whether it had been exposed to what would be perhaps the world's worst nuclear disaster. "A Chernobyl-type leak here would be far worse than in Russia," said Lee Uranaka, a passer-by in Tokyo's Ginza shopping and nightlife district. "That was a relatively-lightly populated area. There are 30 million people in range of this nuclear power station." At 10pm on a Saturday night, the Ginza intersection would normally be thronged. It is Tokyo's Piccadilly Circus, almost the epitomy of intense urban life. Instead, it was like Morecambe in February. You could lie down in the middle of the street and not get run over. The 30 million citizens were sitting at home, trying to learn whether they had been infected. Official nuclear safety authorities warned that the plant, about 160 miles northeast of Tokyo, "may be experiencing a nuclear meltdown." Blanket evacuation orders were issued for thousands of residents within first a six, and then a twelve, mile radius. Iodine tablets, antidotes to radiation, were distributed in the local area and beyond. Police set up roadblocks to stop journalists getting close. Radioactivity at the site's gates was reported to be eight times normal levels. An official "hyper rescue team" from the nuclear agency was dispatched to try and stave off potential disaster at the reactor. Television channels told people to stay indoors, turn off air-conditioning and not drink tap-water. If they had to leave their homes, the channels said, they should avoid exposing their skins, and cover their faces and hands with wet towels. States of emergency were declared at four other nuclear installations. Government spokesmen called for calm, never a very calming sign. Directors of Tepco insisted that the damage was to the building housing the reactor only, not to the reactor itself, and that radiation in the area remained with "assumed levels," whatever that meant. But local residents told The Sunday Telegraph that they did not trust Tepco. Several of the company's senior management were forced to resign in 2002 for falsifying nuclear safety records in 29 cases. It also had to stop operations at five of its reactors, including the one damaged in the latest earthquake, for safety reasons. "We know that they have lied in the past," said one man in Ginza. "They may be wanting to stop panic now."
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan Wouldn't the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki be considered the two worst "nuclear incidents"?
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan http://www.accuracy.org/release/threat-of-nuclear-disaster-in-japan/ KEVIN KAMPS Kamps is a specialist in nuclear waste at Beyond Nuclear. Last year he was in Japan assessing the state of nuclear facilities there. He said today: “The electrical grid is down. The emergency diesel generators have been damaged. The multi-reactor Fukushima atomic power plant is now relying on battery power, which will only last around eight hours. The danger is, the very thermally hot reactor cores at the plant must be continuously cooled for 24 to 48 hours. Without any electricity, the pumps won’t be able to pump water through the hot reactor cores to cool them. Once electricity is lost, the irradiated nuclear fuel could begin to melt down. If the containment systems fail, a catastrophic radioactivity release to the environment could occur. “In addition to the reactor cores, the storage pool for highly radioactive irradiated nuclear fuel is also at risk. The pool cooling water must be continuously circulated. Without circulation, the still thermally hot irradiated nuclear fuel in the storage pools will begin to boil off the cooling water. Within a day or two, the pool’s water could completely boil away. Without cooling water, the irradiated nuclear fuel could spontaneously combust in an exothermic reaction. Since the storage pools are not located within containment, a catastrophic radioactivity release to the environment could occur. Up to 100 percent of the volatile radioactive Cesium-137 content of the pools could go up in flames and smoke, to blow downwind over large distances. Given the large quantity of irradiated nuclear fuel in the pool, the radioactivity release could be worse than the Chernobyl nuclear reactor catastrophe of 25 years ago.”
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan He added "on the bright side, the plant was getting a little old and needed to be replaced anyway". barfo
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan This site seems to be light years ahead of the rest on providing accurate information on what is unfolding. http://www.beyondnuclear.org/ Obviously they are anti-nuclear, but current events suggest that's not necessarily a bad thing. At least they are not burying or ignoring the story.
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan Is everyone still whining about a little tiny tidal wave? Back in the day, Americans were strong. We didn't cry about water. We found the silver lining and went swimming. That's what's gone wrong. Reagan and his two bushes supported us with all this debt instead of cutting back like Carter and Clinton wanted. What's another thousand deaths? You want real deaths, go to Iraq. A hundred thousand deaths here, a hundred thousand deaths there, it starts to add up. Pretty soon, we're arguing over whether it's over a million yet. Why is the media so concerned about a couple thousand Japanese and a couple hundred Libyans? We have two wars to fight, with a third on the way in Libya. Let's get back to the killing and stop the fake humanitarianism.
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan http://catastrophist.wordpress.com/2010/06/28/frankie-macdonald-closes-youtube-account/
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan before and after... http://www.abc.net.au/news/events/japan-quake-2011/beforeafter.htm
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan another amazing video...the sheer power of the water is unbelievable. http://video.l3.fbcdn.net/cfs-l3-sn...8&l3e=20110315101648&lh=0a6cfa5eeaecd6dc12abf
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan I read somewhere that the quake shifted all of Japan eight feet and altered the angle of the earth by 10 inches. Also that the quake tore a hole in the earth either 100 or 150 miles long and 50 miles wide.
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan So, does a quake like this relieve the pressure on the earth's crust in the Ring of Fire or does it exacerbate the tension and make future quakes more likely?
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan Talked to my brother-in-law in Sendai last night. He said his whole neighborhood is gone. His house is gone. His neighbors' houses are gone. The office he worked at is gone. Thankfully he and his family got out in time but he is at a lost as to what to do now. If any of you are interested Groupon has some organizations that are taking donations for various relief agencies. Some of the organizations have corporate sponsors that will match your gift.
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan Repped for passing on the Groupon idea. I can't imagine what your brother-in-law is going through right now. Did his neighborhood get wiped out by the earthquake or the tsunami?
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan They've upped the magnitude now to 9.0, which I can't even fathom. I was in the 1971 Sylmar quake, which was a 6.5, and I still remember it even though I was three. Could the mods change the title to reflect the latest magnitude? Thanks.
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan He doesn't know. I didn't really push the subject. I think it's best to just listen in times like this. It seems like words of encouragement just ring hollow to someone who's lost so much.
Re: 8.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Japan I'm far from and expert but I believe it would lean more toward relieving pressure for the near future but that really only applies to the specific area where the quake was. Earthquakes are caused by two of the earth's plates moving in opposite directions over time. Obviously there is tremendous friction between the plates and they are somewhat elastic to and extent and can bend as long as the friction of the two plates is strong enough to keep them stationary. Eventually, though, the plates will have reached their maximum bending point and the friction will be overcome causing the edge of the plates to slip to where they "should" be based on the movement of the plates. This causes the earthquake. And obviously it typically doesn't settle perfectly with one big movement so smaller aftershocks are caused as the plates settle in. Then the slow process of plate movement builds toward another eventual earthquake. Earthquakes are highly unpredictable though. As far as I know, no one knows how an earthquake in one area could affect the fault lines in another area. You can't really predict when they'll happen. I know in the Bay Area we're "overdue" for a big one and logic would indicate that the longer we go without one the more pressure is being built and the bigger the eventual slip will be once the friction of the plates is overcome. But who the hell knows. There are hundreds and hundreds of earthquakes daily, most of which you don't notice. Perhaps tons of smaller ones are small releases in pressure preventing a big one. Earthquakes are one of those things where science is clueless as to predicting them and even predicting their after effects or their impact on areas. Its times like these where I think to myself that I really need to get some emergency readiness kits to have around the house. I always manage to put it off and never do it but once the big one hits it could be a life and death difference. People expect to be rescued or have somewhere to go but there is ALWAYS a time period where you're just on your own. Be ready people.
Reactor 1 is now smoking, and an explosion in #3. Anderson Cooper is practically begging his anchor to tell him to GTFO of the area. 6' tsunami hit Maui.
