Japanese Nuke site being abandoned...

[cosmiccowboy]

Wow.

This is bad bad stuff. It's over.

They have no choice but to walk away and let things run their course.

Three melted down reactors. Exposed used fuel rod pools boiled dry. Basically a nuclear wasteland in Japan with the winds blowing the stuff everywhere.

Japan will never be the same.

[panhandlehunter]

Bad stuff for sure.

[haas0311]

Man, my prayers are with those folks..

[Patton]

Man thats a bad deal..

[EastTx]

Terrible news. I have a buddy that plays baseball over there. His wife and daughter are on a flight to Tokyo as we speak. How far from Tokyo are these plants?

[daveally]

That's sad.

[cosmiccowboy]

Terrible news. I have a buddy that plays baseball over there. His wife and daughter are on a flight to Tokyo as we speak. How far from Tokyo are these plants?

150 miles

[cosmiccowboy]

[Tubby]

Some tidbits of info and hopefully put the radiation scare into perspective the best I can with what info I've found and what I know...

[dose = dose rate X time]

[dose rate = dose per unit of time]

Radiation in Japan is measured in Sieverts. 1 Sv. = 100 rem (or "R" = roentgen equivalent man)

mR = milliroentgen

mR/hr = milliroentgen per hour

At one of the reactors AT THE GATE, the radiation dose rate is 812.7 mR/hr. (0.8127R). This is NOT a lethal radiation dose. 50 or so brave workers elected to say behind to help spray sea water onto the reactor to help keep it cool. At 812 mR/hr., they WILL be sick...

To put this in perspective, my workers and I are allowed to receive 5000 mR a year. (5R). A lethal dose would be 400-600R (or greater) in one dose.

My lifetime dose is 24,000 mR. (24 R) in 19 years.

The radiation in itself isn't the main concern it's the fact that the radiation is airborne. Iodine is the main concern. It's heavy in Beta particles (radioactive). The thyroid gland picks it up thinking it's regular iodine, leading to thyroid cancer. Potassium Iodine tablets taken orally help keep the thyroid full of iodine, helping prevent the absorption of the beta contaminated iodine that's airborne.

Keep in mind when the reactor melted down in Ukraine in 1986, the airborne radiation spread to 40% of Europe. Still to this day, radiation is still being detected...

The reactor in Japan is said to have better safety implements in place to help prevent that wide-spread of a catastrophe.

[cosmiccowboy]

The question now is what will the radiation levels be after three active reactors burn dry and melt down and the cooling beds holding the spent fuel rods (uncontained) boil dry and start burning?

[Tubby]

The question now is what will the radiation levels be after three active reactors burn dry and melt down and the cooling beds holding the spent fuel rods (uncontained) boil dry and start burning?

I didn't want to bring that up but it is a reality that they (and everyone) will face very soon...


Prayers sent...

[DeadeyeDeb]

Gotta ask, why the experts are wishing the wind would blow to the east!!!!! Hawaii right in the path and the US next. This is not good for anybody, anywhere.
Nuclear power: A good thing til something goes horribly wrong. Then the whole world suffers.

[TXBlkCld]

What exactly happens in a "meltdown"?

[Cam-Mac]

What exactly happens in a "meltdown"?

^ This?

[Hart8]

Good information Tubby.Thanks for the insight.