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03-15-2011, 11:18 AM
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#1 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| Our hearts go out to the Japanese! Talk about bad getting worse ...  Gizmodo, the Gadget Guide
Will the unstable nuclear plants create issues to China? We know the Jet Stream will carry particles around the world ... I'm just curious if China could be effected as well ... let's pray this is not the case!!
If you haven't seen this yet, this is a very scarry first hand account of the Tsunami rushing through the city where this guy was at: Gizmodo, the Gadget Guide
Like I said, Japan you are in our thoughts! | 
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03-15-2011, 12:21 PM
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#2 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| This is from a friend of ours (3/15/11) living in Japan:
Yes I am in a much safer area, although if there's a nuclear meltdown and radiation starts spewing into the air, it'll probably be like photos we've all seen of Mt. St. Helens in Washington state when it erupted. Someone described it as many small Chernobyls. If that were to happen, it'd only be a matter of time before the wind carried radiation throughout the country, as well as to both Korea and China, and, of course, to the west coast of the US. Nobody knows what level the radiation would be, or how sustained over time, but it would be scary -- that's for sure.
And it would show up generations later in increased cancer cases and other things. | |
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03-15-2011, 12:29 PM
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#3 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| The entire disaster is of a magnitude I don't think anyone could ever really get their head around.
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03-15-2011, 12:32 PM
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#4 | | Darth Vaper Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Leftern Mass
Posts: 10,386
| Quote:
Originally Posted by LeCig  This is from a friend of ours (3/15/11) living in Japan:
Yes I am in a much safer area, although if there's a nuclear meltdown and radiation starts spewing into the air, it'll probably be like photos we've all seen of Mt. St. Helens in Washington state when it erupted. Someone described it as many small Chernobyls. If that were to happen, it'd only be a matter of time before the wind carried radiation throughout the country, as well as to both Korea and China, and, of course, to the west coast of the US. Nobody knows what level the radiation would be, or how sustained over time, but it would be scary -- that's for sure.
And it would show up generations later in increased cancer cases and other things. | By the time the radiation gets here, it'll be so dilute it won't amount to much. Since weather patterns go from west to east, most of it will be carried into the Pacific, and any rain storms will wash it into the sea.
The most danger is in the surrounding areas and any islands to the west.
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03-15-2011, 02:35 PM
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#5 | | Gangsta Chimp Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Joplin, MO - USA
Posts: 1,323
| Is there any reason to think the tsunami could cause a meltdown, or multiple meltdowns? Also, I wouldn't think a meltdown would look like a volcanic eruption...? | 
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03-15-2011, 02:39 PM
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#6 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| Quote:
Originally Posted by quasimod Is there any reason to think the tsunami could cause a meltdown, or multiple meltdowns? Also, I wouldn't think a meltdown would look like a volcanic eruption...? | I would call it a mini mt saint helens here: YouTube - New hydrogen blast at Fukushima nuclear reactor after Japan quake-tsunami
His reference is to the whole shebang going up if it gets out of control. | |
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03-15-2011, 02:41 PM
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#7 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| I kind of agree with you Steam...but then again were on the east coast too.
From following the musings of that former Navy nuclear engineer at Georneys: Second Follow-Up Interview with my Dad, a Nuclear Engineer, about the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Disaster in Japan sounds like things may very well get much worse at plant1 reactor 2. If that happens all bets are off. Its pretty much a worse case level 5 already. It may not be Chernobyl....yet...but it has the potential to still be very bad.
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Last edited by berger; 03-15-2011 at 02:44 PM..
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03-15-2011, 02:52 PM
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#8 | | Gangsta Chimp Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Joplin, MO - USA
Posts: 1,323
| Sorry, I'm on the road and out of the loop. I just did a little Googling with my phone, but can't figure out:
Why there was enough hydrogen in the building to explode, and how did the tsunami cause it to explode?
Why a (presumably) modern nuclear power plant didn't fail in a safer manner... The rods merely need to be seperated to cool off. When the power fails, they should seperate automatically. | |
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03-15-2011, 02:56 PM
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#9 | | I like it hot and wet! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Tonganoxie, KS
Posts: 2,166
| I think this was more than a power failure, the earthquake and Tsunami physically altered the structure to where the rods couldn't automatically withdraw, and the pile got so hot that the water was converting directly to a plasma state where the hydrogen and oxygen were dissociating . . .and free hydrogen and oxygen circulating together will react exothermically and violently. In other words, an explosion.
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Take me out to the black
Tell them I ain't comin' back
Burn the land and boil the sea
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03-15-2011, 03:02 PM
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#10 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| Hirz nailed it Quasi. That's pretty much it, and once you get these plants going you don't really shut them down per say.
There is multiple reactors in the location so if one goes runaway, they all follow suit. Currently they are trying to pump in sea water in an attempt to cool them down.
This is much more serious than is being told at the moment, but I don't think we have to worry about it being covered up ... its to far along for that. | |
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03-15-2011, 03:03 PM
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#11 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| Quote:
Originally Posted by HiRezL I think this was more than a power failure, the earthquake and Tsunami physically altered the structure to where the rods couldn't automatically withdraw, and the pile got so hot that the water was converting directly to a plasma state where the hydrogen and oxygen were dissociating . . .and free hydrogen and oxygen circulating together will react exothermically and violently. In other words, an explosion. | It appears it was a bit more than hydrogen that exploded there, just my guess ... but no doubt hydrogen make a fantastic boom. | |
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03-15-2011, 03:07 PM
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#12 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| On drudge now:
NOW, NUCLEAR SNOW DRUDGE REPORT 2011® | |
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03-15-2011, 03:08 PM
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#13 | | Gangsta Chimp Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Joplin, MO - USA
Posts: 1,323
| Ugh, now I have to listen to those insufferable news-pukes on the radio. 1 hour of misery just to get 1 minutes' worth of information, if I'm lucky. | |
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03-15-2011, 03:14 PM
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#14 | | I like it hot and wet! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Tonganoxie, KS
Posts: 2,166
| Horrifying video of the Tsunami sweeping away towns, some of the houses being destroyed, you can see people in: The Most Terrifying Japan Tsunami Videos I’ve Seen
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Tell them I ain't comin' back
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03-15-2011, 03:16 PM
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#15 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| Quote:
Originally Posted by quasimod Is there any reason to think the tsunami could cause a meltdown, or multiple meltdowns? Also, I wouldn't think a meltdown would look like a volcanic eruption...? | Actually there are already partial fuel rod melt downs happening, hence the hydrogen explosions due to zirconium rod casings reactions with the cooling water.
There are also spent fuel rods exposed to the environment due to the hydrogen explosions of the buildings which are part of the secondary containments. The use of sea water with boron is pretty much a last ditch effort to try and prevent a hypercritical....They know these will never be in service again and they at at the last option now.
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Last edited by berger; 03-15-2011 at 03:24 PM..
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03-15-2011, 03:18 PM
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#16 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| Quote:
Originally Posted by HiRezL I think this was more than a power failure, the earthquake and Tsunami physically altered the structure to where the rods couldn't automatically withdraw, and the pile got so hot that the water was converting directly to a plasma state where the hydrogen and oxygen were dissociating . . .and free hydrogen and oxygen circulating together will react exothermically and violently. In other words, an explosion. | Actually the tsunami wave destroyed the diesel generator back up that powers the cooling pumps. Hydrogen was caused by the zirconium fuel rod casing reaching 2200 deg and reacting with the water to form hydrogen...then the venting released it and allowed the explosions when reacting with the surrounding o2. The attempts to vent lead to the explosions but there was no choice. They had to let off pressure to be able to get the seawater into the reactor containment to try and cool it
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Last edited by berger; 03-15-2011 at 03:29 PM..
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03-15-2011, 03:28 PM
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#17 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| Quote:
Originally Posted by HiRezL I think this was more than a power failure, the earthquake and Tsunami physically altered the structure to where the rods couldn't automatically withdraw, and the pile got so hot that the water was converting directly to a plasma state where the hydrogen and oxygen were dissociating . . .and free hydrogen and oxygen circulating together will react exothermically and violently. In other words, an explosion. | The rods did exactly what they were supposed to but there is still alot of residual heat and about 6% reaction still ongoing. It takes a while to be able to cool down even with the shut off rods in place
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03-15-2011, 03:29 PM
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#18 | | I like it hot and wet! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Tonganoxie, KS
Posts: 2,166
| They are now worried that they may see meltdowns in the cooling pools of spent fuel rods as well as in the reactors themselves, which could be worse, because the pools are out in the open whereas the cores are encased in thick concrete walls, if the pools go they will definitely be flinging radioactive waste into the atmosphere. Some genius thought it would be a good idea to put the cooling pools on top of the buildings at the sites.
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Take me out to the black
Tell them I ain't comin' back
Burn the land and boil the sea
You can't take the sky from me | |
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03-15-2011, 03:43 PM
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#19 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| Thats the big problem with reactors..where do you put the spent fuel.
But, they are not going to go super critical unless the pools are drained so they are not anywhere as immediately dangerous as the unspent fuel
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03-15-2011, 04:10 PM
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#20 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| Did you guys know #2 was plutonium/uranium mix? (this is not good) | |
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03-15-2011, 04:22 PM
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#21 | | Couldnt take it anymore Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Mod impersonation carries a stiff penalty YKWYA
Posts: 10,779
| It wont explode like a bomb and shouldn't do what happened at Chernobyl.. Complete meltdown is the worst case..still though...what a disaster all the same
2 was doing OK until the damage to the cooling system caused by 3.
Can you imagine being an emergency response team there now?!
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Last edited by berger; 03-15-2011 at 04:24 PM..
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03-15-2011, 04:54 PM
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#22 | | Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: TN.
Posts: 655
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For more information on Lung Cancer---Keep Smoking. | |
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03-15-2011, 05:20 PM
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#23 | | Darth Vaper Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Leftern Mass
Posts: 10,386
| Quote:
Originally Posted by LeCig | Whew. That's nasty...kinda looked like a mushroom cloud...
__________________ Do you mind if I STEAM?!
"well, you see Steam, we never had a rule about it because we didn't think anybody would ever DO it!"
I'm one lab accident away from being a supervillan. I knew that ahole wasn't from jersey...
Now will you all please leave while Dr Berger and I make out the Death Certificates! | |
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03-15-2011, 05:28 PM
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#24 | | Darth Vaper Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Leftern Mass
Posts: 10,386
| THe k00ks around here all falling all over themselves because there is a nuke about 15 miles from here that is the same design and the same era as the Fukushima reactors that has been in service since ~1972. They even had some anti-nukster mention it on Fox news this AM, but the guy who used to be the head of the NRC said the chances of an event that triggered the problem at Fukushima are nil. I don't really expect to see a tsunami rolling up the Connecticut River any time soon...
__________________ Do you mind if I STEAM?!
"well, you see Steam, we never had a rule about it because we didn't think anybody would ever DO it!"
I'm one lab accident away from being a supervillan. I knew that ahole wasn't from jersey...
Now will you all please leave while Dr Berger and I make out the Death Certificates! | |
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03-15-2011, 05:38 PM
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#25 | | Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Arkansas
Posts: 2,356
| Mar 15, 6:34 PM EDT
New reactor fire as Japan works to contain threat
By ERIC TALMADGE and SHINO YUASA
Associated Press News from The Associated Press | |
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