Developing: Massive 9.0 Magnitude Earthquake hits Japan

[pokeog]

This gaint tidal wave has brought destruction. AND this tidal wave is still roaming japan. I Have heard rumors that it may touch every were in japan. Including the pokemon compony! Angry!

 

[Alice]

tsunamis,earthquakes,miniearthquakes,radioactivity...

Don't forget the Volcano that erupted.

 

[Jack O'Neill]

If you're talking about Shinmoedake, it's all the way in Kyushu, and it's actually been erupting intermittently since January of this year.

As for the current situation at Fukushima, the BBC is reporting that the latest fire at reactor No. 4's spent fuel rod pool is supposedly under control, though live pictures from NHK are still showing smoke coming from the pool building. The most apt comparison of the latest developments in the Fukushima incident would have to be to the Windscale fire; while certainly bad by any standard, it's still nowhere near as bad as Chernobyl.

 

[SBaby]

The whole thing is just a ticking time bomb...I can't help but think that they Japanese can just stall it so everyone around the area to get out...

<facepalm> It's not a bomb... A meltdown is NOT a nuclear explosion, and has nothing to do with explosions.

A meltdown is when the rods that house the pellets literally melt. Hence the name. And then the radioactive pellets are then exposed. The reason they're worried about this is because the outer casing that surrounded the rods blew from the buildup of steam that resulted from the water in the coolant system evaporating and having nowhere to go (there's no power there, so the steam couldn't be processed and re-cooled back into water, which is what keeps the water flowing and cooling the rods; no water = no cooling of the rods). This is why they're dumping seawater on the rods to try and cool them. But there are still alot of things that have to go wrong for this to be another Chernobyl.

Here's how it works. You've basically got 4 layers of protection, or lines of defense. And yes, this is from the physicist's website. As I said, I didn't go to college to study this stuff, so I'm simply relaying the information. And this is really just a bare bones version of it.

The first 'layer' is, obviously, the rods. They house the pellets. But because these pellets are radioactive, the rods get really hot really fast (radiation tends to heat things up). So you need a second 'layer to prevent them from melting.

The second layer is a tank or containment unit of some kind that's filled with water. The tank has a processing mechanism that pumps out steam, because the water will boil after awhile (similar to how water boils on a heated stove). Problem is, there's still radiation, so you need a third layer.

The third layer is a cement container. Now, I admit, I'm not exactly sure how to explain this one, but it keeps the lion's share of the radiation contained, regardless of what happens to the rods.

Finally, you've got the shield itself, which you can see from the outside (it's those block-looking things you've been seeing on the news). This contains whatever radiation the other three layers don't contain.

So, what's gone wrong so far? Well, the steam or hydrogen explosion happened, because of the fact that there's no electricity to pump the steam itself to be cooled and turned back to water. So, the shield is gone. Now you've got the steam escaping, causing the rods to be exposed (and yes, there's going to be some radiation; I'm not saying there isn't). They're dropping seawater onto the rods to prevent a meltdown (presumably, through the hole the steam normally escapes from), hence the steam that we see coming from the pools. So in other words, the rods are only exposed for short periods of time. The main thing that should be a concern right now is that Japan said one of the reactors has a cracked or damaged containment vessel (the cement casing) from one of the more recent 'explosions' (I think there's been four now, but we'll probably see see two more, because there are six total). That could potentially cause a stronger buildup of radiation from that particular reactor.

The initial 'explosion' was not a nuclear explosion. It was caused by the steam building up. The only danger here is the radiation itself, not an explosion (and yes, radiation is just as dangerous as it was in the days before Captain Planet made us think we could all be near a radioactive supervillain without getting radiation sickness). I'm not saying there isn't danger here. But people, especially the media, are taking it out of context without knowing the facts behind how a nuclear reactor works and what a nuclear meltdown is. I've only recently learned what it really means.

Not to mention, I think the real disaster here is the thousands of people that died from the tsunami itself and millions that were affected, not a radiation leak that probably won't kill anyone. Yes, it deserves coverage. But this is just way too much coverage, when you've got millions of people affected by the quake and tsunami itself that deserve the coverage more.

 

[Steven]

He's saying it as if it was a bomb. Not that it is an actual bomb.

I haven't heard any new news today. Has anything happened today?

He's not saying it's a bomb, and he's not saying if it was a bomb either. He said it's a ticking time bomb, that's just an expression to mean that there is a countdown to a bad event, which is basically what this situation is.

The Japanese government should be evacuating people from the area because it's likely that it will go into complete meltdown. Not 100% certain, but there is a probability of it.

If people just stay in side, they will die, at least in areas closer to it. This isn't radioactive fallout, it puts radiation into the air. You can't avoid air, even in your house. And if people die from the radiation due to lack of evacuations, it will put huge amounts of pressure on Japan internationally and nationally.

 

[Esper]

About 20-30 minutes ago they started dumping water from helicopters on the #3 reactor. It's hard to see what's going on since all video of it is from very far away, but there might be some smoke or steam coming from the reactor.

 

[Esper]

Anyways, I wonder if dumping water on the reactors will do much, I wouldn't think so, but who knows?

Well, the helicopters need to fly over and dump quickly because of fears of high radiation levels so they can't be as effective as they might. I'm not sure how effective it'll be, but I believe the news said they're trying to buy time to get water cannons or some other kind of land-based machine on the scene so they can try again to get a continuous supply of water into the reactor.

 

[Netto Azure]

​

Someone got a Japanese Ditto with this mail attached to it D:

This is some heart wrenching stuff. :'(

Well here's the only coverege I've seen on the mainstream media on the fandom's reaction:

https://www.npr.org/2011/03/21/134734691/japan-disaster-strikes-home-among-anime-fans

Thanks NPR. <3

 

[Livewire]

Breaking news: A new 7.4 quake has just hit approximately 40 miles off the coast of Japan.

 

[Netto Azure]

*Sigh* At least it didn't trigger another Tsunami. :'(

 

[Livewire]

https://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/04/11/japan.nuclear.reactors/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1

Breaking News:

The nuclear threat level has been raised to level 7, the highest. It is now a full fledged nuclear disaster in Japan right now. :(

 

[Lily]

^ Oh my gawd. :( Ugh, I hope Japan pulls through this. I've done all I can do from all the way across the map (mainly donate). Now I just cross my fingers. ;_;

 

[Azure Revolver]

Greeeeeeat... As if it cannot get any worse.

I wonder if the Dream World will be delayed again. /offtopic

Anyhow, recently there has been a 7.0 magnitude aftershock. Devastating ****, hope Japan recovers soon. I'd be worrying about casualties, damages, and human lives right now, not pointless crap like anime and manga and such.

 

[Azure Revolver]

Well, it's more than just anime and whatnot that is delayed. Imported goods are affected here as well. It's more than just Japan that is affected by this. It's worldwide.

I don't see how I was supposed to see you were more broadly referring to imported goods, and not about the development of the Dream World.

In that case, it obviously is something to worry about and I wouldn't object to.