th best set of Fukushima Dai-Ichi reactor damage series photos I have found (it isnt pretty)

[stockholmer]

http://www.digitalglobe.com/index.php/27/Sample+Imagery+Gallery

http://www.digitalglobe.com/downloads/DG_Analysis_Japan_Daiichi_Reactor_March2011.pdf (damage analysis pdf)

samples

[Poll_Blind]

1. That appears to be an astounding amount of damage.

PB

[stockholmer]

2. the one that is just shambolic is unfortuntely Unit 3 (the MOX-fueled one)

Also, they just announced here in Sweden on telly that the reactor vessel in Unit 4 has susutained a probable breach (Unit 2 has already been admitted to be breached).

[Poll_Blind]

3. I feel sorry for any living thing that hops, flies, crawls, walks or trots over that...

...cursed patch of Earth for the next 1,000 or so years- including the incredibly brave souls who are still working to prevent even worse outcomes, which I have trouble imagining.

PB

[NV Whino]

4. Wonderful and horrifying images.

[Fumesucker]

5. I enhanced brightened and enlarged it some..

The one on the right is a real mess..

[Baclava]

6. The one's from the ground aren't very pretty either

[stockholmer]

9. thanks for better pic of Unit 4 (that is still intact in my OP)

[stockholmer]

7. update-situation is now much worse (these pics arent current) Unit 2 just had 3rd explosion, and...

... Unit 4 building has now exploded as well, Units 5 and 6 report fires.



"LATEST: Fire erupts again at Unit 4 | : 'Radiation levels now danger to human health'; All but 'critical' workers evacuated from plant; Evacuations expanded, citizens asked to remain indoors; Fire at Unit 4; PM asks for calm | Unit 2 explosion heard in suppression chamber | Fuel rods half exposed ; Core containment vessel may have been damaged..." NHK Twitter



http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/16_41.html
SDF gives up on dousing No.3 reactor

Japan's Self-Defense Forces have postponed a mission to dump water by helicopter on the No.3 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, because radiation above the facility has climbed too high for such work.

White plumes started rising from the reactor on Wednesday morning. Tokyo Electric Power Company says the vapor was steam caused by water evaporating from the reactor's storage pool for spent fuel rods, which is heating up.

In an effort to avert the fuel rods' exposure, a Self Defense Force CH47 helicopter took off from the Sendai base hauling a large container of water on Wednesday afternoon.

But the plan was aborted after radiation levels above the plant were found to have largely exceeded 50 millisieverts -- the maximum permissible for SDF personnel on a mission.

[Javaman]

8. What I don't understand is this...

the military and private industry now make drones the size of a basketball with video cameras on them.

Has no one tried one of these?

Or have they and they aren't releasing any of the photos?

[Fumesucker]

10. That would be a difficult environment to fly in..

Lots of strong air currents due to the vast quantities of heat energy being pumped into the atmosphere.

[CJvR]

11. Might be...

...that the radiation is to strong for the electronics.
That's a cheerful thought!

[stockholmer]

13. just my gut call, but I think the situ is far worse than they are releasing to general public

You have a 36 million person mega-city metro area just 200 or so klicks away, and a mass panic will kill thousands. They are just rolling the dice that they can somehow contain the meltdowns.

it is a horrible conundrum

[truebrit71]

18. I tend to agree with you..I think the situation has been worse then reported for quite some time...

...

[CJvR]

12. Very grim.

The blast in block 1 seems to have done little other than blasting of to top roof.
Block 3 however looks gutted, and the constant steam release seems to indicate at least a breach on the main circulation loop, or worse.
The devestation of block 4 is a bit surprising. Did block 3's roof land on it or something?

[stockholmer]

14. no, since the OP pics were taken, Unit 4 has since exploded (see comments in thread for pics)

[Thunderstruck]

16. So is that all the reactor buildings now exploded? Or is it 3 out of the 4?

[CJvR]

19. All of them...

...IIRC block 2 had an internal explosion as well.

[stockholmer]

21. all but Units 5 and 6 have now exploded (Units 5 and 6 have huge amounts of spent fuel rods too)

[DailyGrind]

15. Where is the robot army that we were promised could handle such things?

What a mess. I guess it'll gradually cool down over the next weeks/months but once the structure is all blown to crap that's got to be impossible getting in there.

[rhett o rick]

17. I saw a good cut-away of the plant design but cant find it again. Can anyone help? nm

[jtuck004]

20. 2nd graphic down on the right - Mark 1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_water_reactor

[rhett o rick]

23. Thank you very much. nm

[Lucinda]

22. TY!