Posted on 03/16/2011 9:15:53 PM PDT by fight_truth_decay
Units 1 and 2: TEPCO has released estimates of the levels of core damage at these two reactors: 70% damage at Unit 1 and 33% at Unit 2. They have also stated that Unit 1 is being adequately cooled.
Outlook: It is difficult to make conjectures at this point about the final disposition of the damaged fuel without further information. However, during our only operating experience with a partially melted and subsequently cooled core, Three Mile Island, the fuel mass was fully contained by the reactor vessel, resulting in minimal radiation release to the public. A decision is currently being made on how to best supply cooling water to Unit 2.
Unit 3: At 8:34 AM JST, white smoke was seen billowing from roof of Unit 3. The source of this smoke was not investigated because workers evacuated due to radiation levels. These levels had been fluctuating during the early morning hours before rising to 300-400 millisievert/hr around the time the smoke appeared. It was unclear at the time whether these rising levels were a result of some new event at Unit 3, or were lingering as a result of Unit 2s recent troubles.
Outlook: In order to provide some perspective on worker doses to this point, radiation sickness sets in at roughly 1000 millisieverts. A future post will deal further with the health effects of various amounts of radiation. Response to the smoke seen at Unit 3 appears to be in an information gathering phase at this point. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano speculated the smoke from Unit 3 might be the result of a similar wetwell explosion to that at Unit 2, but there is not enough information currently available to support or refute that statement.
Units 4-6: Flames at Unit 4 result of a pump fire....
(Excerpt) Read more at mitnse.com ...
Includes: Introduction to Radiation Health Effects and Radiation Status at Fukushima with several charts and explanations.
NY Times on 3/16/11 referenced by mitnse
They omitted 3 and 4.
I see the statement.
Bookmark
Bfl
They are complaining about lacking water to the cooling system!
They have plenty of seawater outside their door!!
Send a couple of tugboats or oil rig supply vessels with powerful water canons douching the whole power plant with seawater. They did it on the BP explosion in the Mexican Gulf!!!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/03/us/03rig.html
Ping to # 6!!!
The BP Explosion wasn’t spreading radiation out to sea.
Jesus christ, people, this isn’t a Hollywood movie, it’s REALITY. Has our media-centric culture completely detached us from reality?
The last I heard there was a high-priority project to get power lines strung up to the Fukushima nuclear plant so they could power up the backup systems to cool the reactor fuel rods. I wonder how fast is that project coming along....
No but there are 50 Japanese still working at the plant, hmmmm!!!
So how are they going to get the planned fire trucks with water canons working there, hmmmm???
We will be posting here as the radiation washes over us LOL
Both of your sites are great - thanks!
Spokesmen for TEPCO and Japan's regulatory agency, Nuclear and Industry Safety Agency, on March 17 Japan time refuted reports that there was a complete loss of cooling water in the used fuel pool at Fukushima Daiichi reactor 4.
The spokesmen said the situation at reactor 4 has changed little during the day today and water remained in the fuel pool. However, both officials said that the reactor had not been inspected in recent hours.
"We can't get inside to check, but we've been carefully watching the building's environs, and there has not been any particular problem," said TEPCO spokesman Hajime Motojuku.
SNIP
TEPCO also continues efforts to restore offsite power to the plant, with up to 40 workers seeking to restore electricity to essential plant systems by Thursday morning, March 17.
UPDATE AS OF 7:30 P.M. EDT, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16:
NEI has added a new video to its YouTube page "NEI Offers Support to Japan." Also available is an updated schematic of the reactor design at Fukushima Daiichi.
More updates today at links.
Three other souces that I have been following for analysis and information:
Japan Atomic Industrial Forum - Japan techical view
http://www.jaif.or.jp/english/
World Nuclear News - UK/EU technical view
http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/default.aspx
Zero Hedge - global financial view
http://www.zerohedge.com/
I do not consider any single source to have the full story at this point. I’m happy to add the MIT site to the reading list.
The REALITY is, if you want to drench the buildings with seawater, NOTHING beats my proposal!!!
Just try to figure out the logistics of obstacles when they bring in 11 firetrucks with water canons, supplying sea water???
Well, it took FPL more than three weeks (3+) to restore power to our house after the last hurricane and in some areas much longer!!!
So when they could use the helicopters over the plant they could as well use tugboats or oil rig supply vessels with powerful water canons like they used on the BP platform last year!!
Crew members could be outfitted like the 50 plant workers for radiation protection. Those vessels can shoot of a powerful cascade of sea water with very little labor involved!!!
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