Huge 8.9 quake plus tsunami - Japan

Also, Japanese have a much stronger identification with place than Americans do. Their families have lived in that area for centuries and their ancestors are buried there. It's a different mentality.

I understand what you are saying John; however, what some folks do not understand is that the degree of conservatism and what-if analysis in the Nuke industry far exceeds what most people can comprehend.

I said . . .
I for one hear it loud and clear. Do not use Nuclear Fission Reactors. Perhaps for research purposes, space-probes, etc. but it is just too dangerous for Earth based power generation...

You said . . .
Once again, you show us that you have no idea what you are talking about. They do NOT use fission reactors, of any kind, in space probes.

What they do is use the heat from normal decay of some radioisotopes to create electrical energy. They have even used plutonium for this, and this IS a big concern, as if the rocket explodes, with the payload, it showers LOTS of nasty stuff into the atmosphere.

Now, quick reality check here... Have there been more nuke plant disasters, or rocket failures in which the payload was lost in that explosion?

Quick... Go google it, HOPING that I am wrong. But, please, at least have the stones to post up that you are wrong, and appreciate being corrected. You have yet to do this when corrected, and there is a large sample base of you being corrected, so it really does speak volumes concerning your critical thinking abilities.

Pretty sure we have not ever built a fission reactor. It has been maybe achieved in microsecond bursts using a laser I think. Fusion is what we use.

They are refusing U.S. medical assistance. I find this strange... I wonder if they are at least accepting Search and Rescue teams?

AFS

We can't control nature. Case in point: 3 Mile Island...

It is as bad as Chernoble now...

http://nuclearstreet.com/nuclear_power_industry_news/b/nuclear_power_news/archive/2010/03/31/under-the-hood-with-duncan-williams-nuclear-fission-in-space-03312.aspx

Although the United States conducted extensive research into the use of fission reactors in space between 1959 and 1973, we have only deployed a fission reactor in space once.

The satellite, known as the SNAP-10A, was launched in 1965 for a brief test flight of 43 days. Although the test flight was successful, the United States has not utilized any fission reactors in space since then. In contrast, Russia has successfully deployed over 30 fission reactor space systems, and plans on continuing its space fission program due to the many advantages fission offers over conventional power sources. Despite being outpaced by Russia’s program, the United States is once again researching the feasibility of fission reactor technology for next generation space systems.

Go back and read it... I even made it bold for you. If you really need another hint, it has to to with your statement that 'nuclear fission reactors' are only good for space probes, implying that they are used to power current probes. In fact, they do not, and never have.

See, that's the things with you... You have a little knowledge, but think you are an expert, and that is dangerous, especially given the fact that even when shown where you are wrong, you don't back up. You just keep plodding forward, reloading, and continuing to shoot yourself in the foot. Given your job, it makes you VERY dangerous, as kids can't pick our fact from your fiction.

For more examples of where you are wrong, have been corrected, yet failed to back up... Go back through this thread, and see where you are directly quoted and corrected, then see your replies... You can do this in the Ark on the Moon thread as well, and even in the 9/11 thread.

American Nuclear Society Backgrounder:
Japanese Earthquake/Tsunami; Problems with Nuclear Reactors
3/12/2011 5:22 PM EST
To begin, a sense of perspective is needed… right now, the Japanese earthquake/tsunami is clearly a
catastrophe; the situation at impacted nuclear reactors is, in the words of IAEA, an "Accident with
Local Consequences."
The Japanese earthquake and tsunami are natural catastrophes of historic proportions. The death toll is
likely to be in the thousands. While the information is still not complete at this time, the tragic loss of
life and destruction caused by the earthquake and tsunami will likely dwarf the damage caused by the
problems associated with the impacted Japanese nuclear plants.
What happened?
Recognizing that information is still not complete due to the destruction of the communication
infrastructure, producing reports that are conflicting, here is our best understanding of the sequence of
events at the Fukushima I‐1 power station.
 The plant was immediately shut down (scrammed) when the earthquake first hit. The automatic
power system worked.
 All external power to the station was lost when the sea water swept away the power lines.
 Diesel generators started to provide backup electrical power to the plant’s backup cooling
system. The backup worked.
 The diesel generators ceased functioning after approximately one hour due to tsunami induced
damage, reportedly to their fuel supply.
 An Isolation condenser was used to remove the decay heat from the shutdown reactor.
 Apparently the plant then experienced a small loss of coolant from the reactor.
 Reactor Core Isolation Cooling (RCIC) pumps, which operate on steam from the reactor, were
used to replace reactor core water inventory, however, the battery‐supplied control valves lost
DC power after the prolonged use.
 DC power from batteries was consumed after approximately 8 hours.
 At that point, the plant experienced a complete blackout (no electric power at all).
 Hours passed as primary water inventory was lost and core degradation occurred (through some
combination of zirconium oxidation and clad failure).
 Portable diesel generators were delivered to the plant site.
 AC power was restored allowing for a different backup pumping system to replace inventory in
reactor pressure vessel (RPV).
 Pressure in the containment drywell rose as wetwell became hotter.
 The Drywell containment was vented to outside reactor building which surrounds the
containment.
 Hydrogen produced from zirconium oxidation was vented from the containment into the reactor
building.
 Hydrogen in reactor building exploded causing it to collapse around the containment.
 The containment around the reactor and RPV were reported to be intact.
 The decision was made to inject seawater into the RPV to continue to the cooling process,
another backup system that was designed into the plant from inception.
 Radioactivity releases from operator initiated venting appear to be decreasing.
Can it happen here in the US?
 While there are risks associated with operating nuclear plants and other industrial facilities, the
chances of an adverse event similar to what happened in Japan occurring in the US is small.
 Since September 11, 2001, additional safeguards and training have been put in place at US
nuclear reactors which allow plant operators to cool the reactor core during an extended power
outage and/or failure of backup generators – “blackout conditions.”
Is a nuclear reactor "meltdown" a catastrophic event?
 Not necessarily. Nuclear reactors are built with redundant safety systems. Even if the fuel in the
reactor melts, the reactor's containment systems are designed to prevent the spread of
radioactivity into the environment. Should an event like this occur, containing the radioactive
materials could actually be considered a "success" given the scale of this natural disaster that
had not been considered in the original design. The nuclear power industry will learn from this
event, and redesign our facilities as needed to make them safer in the future.

Nuclear rods melting inside three Fukushima reactors, Japan admits

Source: The Journal (IRE)

JAPAN’S NUCLEAR AUTHORITIES say they believe that three reactors at the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant are now melting.

The country’s chief cabinet secretary, Yukio Edano, said that although staff at the nuclear facility – where two containment buildings have been destroyed by hydrogen explosions – were unable to check for certain, it was “highly likely” that the nuclear cores at reactors, 1 2 and 3 at Fukushima I nuclear station had begun to melt.

Reuters had earlier reported that the cooling mixture of seawater and boron in the number 2 reactor had totally evaporated, with the reactor’s nuclear rods therefore totally exposed for a significant period of time.

The plant operator TEPCO had earlier said it couldn’t rule out the possibility of a nuclear meltdown in the reactor – and had admitted that a partial meltdown could already be underway.

Read more: http://www.thejournal.ie/nuclear-rods-melting-inside-three-fukushima-reactors-japan-admits-2011-03

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