Melted fuel in reactor No. 3 appears to have burned thru pressure vessel (plutonium rods)+ much more

[stockholmer]

http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201105170428.html

“Huge Problems”: All parts of fuel rods appear to have melted at all 3 reactors admits TEPCO

Data shows meltdowns occurred at the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, creating huge problems for the plant operator that had presented a more optimistic scenario. <...>

Goshi Hosono, special adviser to Prime Minister Naoto Kan, acknowledged the likelihood of meltdowns at the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors. “We have to assume that meltdowns have taken place,” Hosono said at a news conference May 16. <...>

“When highly contaminated water was found at the No. 2 reactor building in late March, we recognized that a meltdown had taken place. So I informed the government,” said. <...>

TEPCO had said it believed that only a portion of the nuclear fuel rods had melted. Now, it appears that all parts of the fuel rods have melted. <...>

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http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110518006065.htm

Radiation tests lacking / Nuclear plant workers unsure of internal exposure levels

"Nearly two months after the start of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, only 10 percent of workers there had been tested for internal radiation exposure caused by inhalation or ingestion of radioactive substances, due to a shortage of testing equipment available for them.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of the crippled nuclear compound, is finding it impossible to use testing apparatus set up inside the facility because of high radiation levels recorded near the equipment.

A number of personnel working to overcome the nuclear crisis at the facility are increasingly alarmed by their lack of internal exposure testing. Some have said they may have to continue to work at the facility without knowing whether their radiation exposure levels have exceeded the upper limit set by the government.

snip

He ate in a building that houses an emergency headquarters and accommodates plant workers. At the end of April, he was notified that the building was also radiation-contaminated. "I've probably taken in radioactivity while eating," he said............................"

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vivian-norris-de-montaigu/interview-with-akira-toku_b_863297.html

Nuclear Engineer: Almost all nuclear engineers have known since early on that the reactors have melted through the core. Most of the fallout from plutonium-containing MOX fuel will drop on U.S., unless very strong winds take it elsewhere

<...> Professor teaches in Idaho and as an academic he is still free to tell what he believes and believes almost all nuclear engineers following this disaster know, and have known since almost the beginning, that the reactors have melted through the core and that this has not been admitted until just these past few days when access to the computer data from the control rooms was obtained <...>

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The most terrifying fact is that the Japanese power plants are using ‘dirty’ fuel, which most countries have rejected and banned. Needless to say that the Americans built them. Since the Earth is moving Counterclockwise most of the fall-out will drop on U.S., unless very strong winds take it somewhere else. <...>

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http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110518x3.html

U.S. made “strong request” that radioactive water be dumped in ocean says special adviser to Japan gov’t


"SEOUL — Japanese playwright Oriza Hirata, who serves as a special adviser to the Cabinet, claimed in a recent lecture given in Seoul that the dumping of low-level radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean followed a "strong request" from the United States, a person who attended the lecture said Wednesday.


The release of the water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant last month generated anxiety about the possible spread of radioactive contamination from the seaside power station.

The Japanese government had apparently given its permission for the release of the water after receiving a report from plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co.

Hirata's remarks, made Tuesday, that the release was not carried out based on Tokyo's independent judgment but rather on a request from Washington is likely to ignite a debate......................................."

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http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/19_23.html

TEPCO says it’s “difficult” to start injecting nitrogen needed to prevent blast at Reactor No. 3

"The utility says it would be difficult to start work on injecting nitrogen gas needed to prevent a hydrogen blast into the containment vessel under such high radiation levels.

snip

TEPCO is rushing to make the reactor buildings safe enough for workers to go inside and proceed with the plans outlined in its roadmap to stabilize the reactors.

This includes installing new cooling systems to circulate water leaked from containment vessels back into the reactors and the nitrogen injections.

Thursday, May 19, 2011 12:47 +0900 (JST)"


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http://lucaswhitefieldhixson.com/nuclear-cover-nuclear-experts-knew-reactor-1-meltdown-march-15th-2011

NUCLEAR COVER-UP - Nuclear Experts Knew Of Reactor 1 Meltdown By March 15th, 2011


A power point presentation that was distributed to workers at Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario, Canada on March 15th. The power point clearly points out many discrepancies with TEPCO's press releases.

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Sharp rise in radioactive material near Reactor No. 3 – Seawater concentration triples in a day (VIDEO)

The operator of the damaged nuclear power plant in Fukushima has reported a sharp rise in the concentration of a radioactive material in samples of seawater near the Number 3 reactor.

Tokyo Electric Power Company says it detected 110 becquerels of radioactive cesium-134 per cubic centimeters in seawater samples taken on Wednesday morning.

The level is 1,800 times the national legal limit, compared to 550 times, which was reported the previous day. <...>


Watch the video here--------------------> http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/18_37.html

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http://lucaswhitefieldhixson.com/radiation-poisoning-being-kept-under-wraps-japan

Radiation Poisoning Being Kept Under Wraps In Japan


I must admit while researching the developments at Fukushima, I am often baffled by the lack of news on the effects of the radiation being released from the 4 compromised reactors. With levels as high as 2,000 mSv outside of Reactor 1, workers would only be able to work in these areas for 30-60 minutes before receiving the max dose of radiation allowed. One of the reasons that we may not be hearing about all of the cases of radiation poisoning, is that the Japanese Government is sending people exposed to high level radiation to select hospitals across the country.

The workers at Fukushima Daiichi have only seen Medical Officers one time since the end of April. The doctor who inspected the workers at the plant in April was quoted stating that the workers were at a risk of depression or death from overwork. There are over 800 workers at Fukushima Daiichi, hundreds of which sleep on-site in a building adjacent to the reactors............................................

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http://lucaswhitefieldhixson.com/amazing-video-tbs-jnn-live-cam

Amazing Video From TBS JNN Live Cam


...............capturing the live feed from TBS JNN, and last night in the middle of the morning, the cameras panned all the way back and you see the total distance they are from the plant. It is quite stunning. The camera then pans along the coast and shows a tug boat chugging southward. The second nuclear power plant that you see is Fukushima Daini, and the mystery boat could possibly be exchanging materials from one location to the other.

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http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110518005659.htm

Reactor No. 6 now has over 6 feet of contaminated water in turbine building — Water in reactor building may cause cooling system to fail


<...> In the turbine building of the No. 6 reactor, for example, contaminated groundwater has seeped in and accumulated to a depth of up to 2 meters. If water flows into a reactor building, the emergency power system to cool the reactor may stop operating. <...>