Japan reactor nuclear core may have breached

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

TOKYO (AP) - Japanese nuclear safety officials said Friday that they suspect that the reactor core at one unit of the troubled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant may have breached, raising the possibility of more severe contamination to the environment.

"It is possible that somewhere at the reactor may have been damaged," said Hidehiko Nishiyama, a spokesman for the nuclear safety agency. But he added that "our data suggest the reactor retains certain containment functions," implying that the damage may have occurred in Unit 3's reactor core but that it was limited.

Officials say the damage could instead have happened in other equipment, including piping or the spent fuel pool.

Operators have been struggling to keep cool water around radioactive fuel rods in the reactor's core after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami cut off power supply to the plant and its cooling system.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20110325/D9M634Q80.html

---

FULL story at link.

[Adsos Letter]

1. I wonder what the role of saltwater is in all of this...

since the tsunami gave everything a thorough drenching, and they've been dousing the reactor facilities with it for a while now. Just curious.

[Omaha Steve]

2. Tons of salt piling up and preventing cooling the hot spots

Just like hard water scale. It keeps cool water from getting close enough to the super heat to make a difference. The critical area temps will continue to rise exponentially. Like a stuck thermostat in a cars cooling system.

Not good.

[Adsos Letter]

4. I'm glad my youngest comes home from college tomorrow

her and her beau; I think I'll take 'em to The City, get away from all this sturm und drang for awhile.

I need a break.

Thanks for your response Omaha Steve, and best wishes to you and the family.

[Tx4obama]

3. Kaku said that 90,000 pounds of salt has built up ....

and that it's not in the 'play book' because this has never happened before and was not ever planned for so the Japanese are trying to figure it out.

Anyway, he said something like that.
I think it was on Rachel Maddow's show tonight.

[Adsos Letter]

5. Great.

I can't even think about this stuff anymore. I'm on news overload.

[Tx4obama]

6. Here's a link to the video of Kaku and Maddow talking about the salt.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/ns/msnbc_tv-rachel_maddow_show/#42261008

[Adsos Letter]

8. Thanks for the link Tx4obama...

My daughter is driving up from college in SoCal to spend a few days at home. She probably won't roll in until about 3:00am, and I'm not hitting the sack until I see her safely in, so this will give me something to help fill the time. :hi:

[Tx4obama]

7. I'm on news overload too. There is just too much going on all at one time.

I'm having a hard time keeping up with up with Japan, Libya, Yemen, Wisconsin, Ohio, Florida, The GOP craziness, what Obama's doing each day, etc. - makes your brain go all fuzzy after awhile :(

[Adsos Letter]

9. Yup. I'm gonna get out and see some things in San Francisco for the next couple days

take my youngest, enjoy life away from all of this for a bit.

[Tx4obama]

10. Have a nice mini-vacation :)

Tomorrow I am going to plant a patch of basil, bake some bread, and give my dog a haircut.
That is if I can keep myself from turning on the computer and TV box :)

Good night.

[Adsos Letter]

12. Resist the Media!!! Plant that basil, bake that bread...

clip that dog. :)

Good Night.

[ljm2002]

32. Tote that barge, lift that bale...

...get a little drunk and you...

No... don't do it! Don't land in jail!

:-)

[Adsos Letter]

55. lol!

:D

[calimary]

15. No kidding. I'm on overwhelm. Thinking a lot about Miss Peggy Lee and her great song

"Is That All There Is?"

"...if that's all there is, then let's keep dancing. Let's break out the booze and have a ball..."

I for one am going to go lose myself in my son's band's gig tonight. They're onstage at the Whisky a Go Go later this evening (Friday the 25th). I'm just gonna forget the world's troubles and concentrate on how good they sound, how hard they rock, and how cute they look. And they got some new merch in that they'll be showing off - their new ACIDIC sunglasses and one of 'em is probably gonna be wearing ACIDIC thong underwear on his head!

I'm feeling a great need to be loud and foolish! Gotta get OFF the world for a little bit - it's just too much lately.

[Biker13]

54. Your Son...

is playing at Whiskey A Go-Go?! Hey congrats! That's the big time! Have a GREAT time, and let him know that some of us here are impressed!

But...don't let him know you think they look "cute"...that's not rock and roll!

On the other hand, you're a Mom, so what can he expect?

Biker's Old Lady

[greyl]

11. If a giant snail shows up, they'll have that covered. nt

[Adsos Letter]

13. lol! Ah, yeah... n/t

[jtuck004]

14. I was thinking order 500 tons of watermelon...but from the center of the U.S.,

where it is firm and has a serious flavor, not the West Coast stuff.

[aquart]

18. Is anything going to explode?

[tavalon]

22. Well, there was an amateur scientist on the board a while back who suggested dry ice

That would definitely make a big boom, but otherwise, this will be heading down and contaminating much, if not all of Japan. Water tables and agriculture and animals and well, everything will be messed up. It's horrible.

[Fuddnik]

23. Yeah, me.

But that's normal after my first cup of coffee.

[BrookBrew]

31. Reality. It was washed away in the wave that killed 27000

IF they lost primary and secondary containment they will be leaking radiation into the air. How much depends on a host of variables not known to anyone.

Why unknown? Because all the telemetry is damaged or offline (like the lights).

real world it will be FAR LESS destructive than the tsunami, or say nuclear testing in the US..

If by explode you mean an uncontrolled super critical event like a bomb, NO.

If you mean pressure / hydrogen / steam, possible..

[jpak]

24. This is not good - despite all the obfuscating happy talk

yup

[uncle ray]

37. i don't know nuclear reactors, but i know corrosion.

the environment around the reactor is now extremely corrosive, even exotic metals that have been coated or are highly corrosion resistant will very rapidly corrode in that environment, particularly after fires, explosions the reactors elevated temps, etc. the corrosion from the salt water will create a scale that will insulate the corroded components from the cooling water. more importantly, the corrosion is like a million tiny pry bars working their way into joints, seams and fasteners, literally tearing the place apart. it is a worst case scenario beyond anyone's expectations. even if they get everything under control, the whole facility will continue to deteriorate like the 78 Datsun i drove one winter in Minnesota.

[xchrom]

16. Recommend

[secondwind]

17. After reading all of your posts in here, I think of Pres. Obama, and how he cannot escape

from all of this,not even for a day. :-(

[Hubert Flottz]

20. He pleaded for the job.

It goes with the territory.

This current calamity can't be blamed on Obama. This power plant was running when Obama was a kid. Building these in earthquake zones is like playing Russian Roulette. We have let them create the mother of all widow makers since 1945. The spent rods will bite us all on the ass some day. 300,000 years is a long time, but it's the half-life of plutonium. I expect "they" might still blame all of us in 300,000 years.

[marions ghost]

27. they will think we are so stupid & greedy

in the future, not to have stopped it when we could.

[Hubert Flottz]

19. What's worse than corexit in your gulf?

"Drill Baby Drill!"

Plug the hole with Jack Welch.(junkshot)

[tavalon]

21. In the beginning, I supported limited lying for panic control.

It's been long enough now, time to be honest.

[tuckessee]

30. What;s "limited lying"?

How many people will your deception kill? And why should anyone believe what admitted lyers tell us?

[Dover]

25. Japan Times: Fuel rods in reactor 3 feared damaged

Friday, March 25, 2011


Fuel rods in reactor 3 feared damaged
Radiation in basement water 10,000 times above normal

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/

[Raschel]

26. "Suspect", "may have", "possibility", "possible", "may have been", "suggest", "implying", "may have"

"could instead have".

But they know FOR SURE that it's limited.

[ReturnoftheDjedi]

28. until they don't

[BrookBrew]

29. Start HERE and work DOWN. It will be less than this..

(you can go visit this spot if you like) It is a shitload more limited than this...

BTW 27,000 people are going to be dead from the tsunami by next week or so.. that is 27,000 more people than the reactor killed.. hmm

[closeupready]

33. And you know that excess radiation hasn't had any impact on mortality HOW?

nt

[BrookBrew]

34. Impact like eating bacon or smoking or Radiation sickness

the impact of radiation on mortality is a solid science and can be found with a quick look at data from the US testing program. The doses required to impact human life have been known for decades.

It is either measuring > or = to those doses or NOT.

Radiation Sickness can be ruled out because people are not showing symptoms of illness AND not testing positive for the MASSIVE doses it takes to kill you.

[uppityperson]

35. "Radiation Sickness" is not the only problem from excess radiation. What about thyroid issues?

Thyroid cancers and just plain old hypothyroid problems for instance. A low dose can severely impact your thyroid which can impact a whole lot of your life afterwards since taking a synthroid daily doesn't make many people healthy again.

[BrookBrew]

36. The exposure required from 131 is well known

as the same isotope is used to measure uptake function and in some cases of overactive thyroid to actually kill the gland..

Cancer is more common in children with a "medium dose" large dose just kills it. Adults are not as cancer prone.

But this is very well documented as it is used in Nuclear Med, DAILY.

[uppityperson]

40. I am very familiar with the isotope, took it myself and am also very aware of continuing issues

with being hypothyroid. I thought it would be simple, take a synthroid daily and all would be fine. However, am finding it isn't that easy, for me and for many others.

Just because it is used in "Nuclear Med, DAILY" does not mean exposing thousands or millions via the environment is good or healthy.

[BrookBrew]

41. No it is not "good". What it means is there is data

to allow people to react based on actual decays happening in the environment around them. Exposure ranges from 12mrem on an international flight to 50sv you would get standing on the remnants of the core right after chernobyl exploded. The amount to actually kill the gland has never been present in the water or other places where people are living.

It is not good, but it is not quite the same as say atmospheric testing.

My point is that this is a know thing with decades of medicine and science behind it. Pro or Anti is fine on Nuke energy, but people panicking buying up KI tablets on the US west coast are silly ill informed people.

[colorado_ufo]

43. I can personally attest to that.

[uppityperson]

48. Many of us who grew up downwind drinking milk have thyroid issues

which for some is easily treatable but for many it affects much of us.

[Name removed]

49. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[uppityperson]

50. Aside from the fact it takes a month to die after your thyroid stops, you are pushing it on insults

I'd advise you to tone down the insults because yes, DU has rules against that and you are definitely pushing the line.

When I got my thyroid nuked and killed, it took a month to shut down enough to be hypothyroid. It has not been that long since the plant started spewing radiation. Patience grasshopper.

[Raschel]

38. How do you know how many people will die from the reactors? It's been admitted that there is no way

to assess nuclear related deaths accurately. And stop sending me this picture, you should start your own post for that.

[BrookBrew]

39. Umm Nuclear deaths were being assessed in 1973

by jama from the fallout of those tests. There were less than 27,000.

They types of cancers that are caused by exposure are not common and can be traced.

But at this point with the real data that is out there from this event (not shit of real value yet) I am employing the anti chicken little response.

[Raschel]

42. The cancers they attribute to Chernobyl are mostly due to the virulence, but to organizations still

do not agree on the number of deaths and illnesses from Chernobyl. People suffer from heart, stomach, liver, kidney and nervous system problems. Many are disabled and unable to work and when their life comes to an end it will be due to 'natural causes'.

[defendandprotect]

45. Exactly -- and all of this is simply about enriching the few -- destroying the many ....

[BrookBrew]

46. Are you saying a Soviet reactor event was about enriching people?

man my memory of the USSR must be completely wrong..

[defendandprotect]

52. No... YOU seem to be suggesting that -- what I'm saying is that nuclear reactors

are unsafe, and costly beyond our wildest dreams -- damaging to citizens and

communities. And they are sold by the few for their own enrichment while the

taxpayer picks up the true costs -- not only financial but health.

[defendandprotect]

44. Think a great deal of the truth of this situation has been buried -- like BP/Gulf --

[BrookBrew]

47. Buried where. Radiation can be detected by 1st world nations

from thousands of miles away. The death of 27,000 people and destruction of infrastructure may be inhibiting real time access to information.

[defendandprotect]

53. You think we know the full truth of these reactors at this point? Or the full damage?

Or do you think we know the full truth of BP and the damage that caused and

will cause?


:rofl: if it weren't so sad!!

[fascisthunter]

51. yikes