How did the nuclear accident get this bad?

[CarmelHP]

CarmelHP I guess if nuclear power is such a good thing then it looks like Japan and actually the whole World is worrying over nothing here.
Could we then equate this situation to the same thing as hearing about a car wreck?
Nothing to worry about at all. And nope, no chance of it getting worse, let alone ever happening again.
Freezing in our houses. Lets see....you have a woodburner? Or do you have any wood of your own on your little lot of ground up there in that suburb?

So 6 billion people are supposed to burn wood? That sounds feasible. It's that kind of Luddite worldview that keeps better, safer reactors from being built. We can't risk decommisioning older, more dangerous water cooled reactor designs from the '50's because we can't get approval or even test newer designs such as molten salt cooled reactors.

 

[03A3]

Luddite worldview lol.
Oh well, just keep on toying with the worst thing man has ever invented.

 

[longbow]

just turned on the tv and another reactor has blown up..... 7 missing from this explosion....I can't see them sending more workers back to the plant. The second explosion was much more powerful. This is getting crazy bad, but they keep saying all is ok.

 

[BumpShadow]

just turned on the tv and another reactor has blown up..... 7 missing from this explosion....I can't see them sending more workers back to the plant. The second explosion was much more powerful. This is getting crazy bad, but they keep saying all is ok.

It's preety standard practise for the japanese to put a smile on everything. It's done to reduce panic, not save face. They have already put out a call for outside help.

I know that the "last ditch" effort of pumping salt water into the core is pretty effective, provided you do it fast enough. It's a bit like managing a magnesium fire. My credential in this area was I was stationed on a nuclear sub. I would be interested to know if the japanese reactors run "hot" or "cold". Could make all the difference.

 

[Blackhawk2001]

Hindsight my arse, not when you're dealing with a nuclear power plant.
Not a personal thing directed at any of you, but I know what it means to plan for all contingencies.

I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with you, having been an emergency management planner. With nuclear power, as with any other industrial/chemical process, designers and planners look at the forseeable potential hazards and plan for them. Ideally, there would be a safety procedure in place for every wild contingency the designers and planners could think of, but, in reality, there is always a tradeoff between safety and economic viability. Part of the reason we don't have more nuclear power plants in this country is because the safety regulations laid down for them make them prohibitively expensive to build and maintain (this is not an accident on the government's part).

When the japanese rebuild their power plants, I'm certain they'll plan for protection against this particular hazard, as well as reenforcing their earthquake preparedness measures, but this is the worst earthquake/tsunami in their recorded history, so it's understandable why they didn't forsee this particular issue.

 

[ATM]

...just keep on toying with the worst thing man has ever invented.

The helicopter ejection seat?

 

[SemperFiUSMC]

The helicopter ejection seat?

Reality TV.

 

[jblomenberg16]

It's preety standard practise for the japanese to put a smile on everything. It's done to reduce panic, not save face. They have already put out a call for outside help.

I know that the "last ditch" effort of pumping salt water into the core is pretty effective, provided you do it fast enough. It's a bit like managing a magnesium fire. My credential in this area was I was stationed on a nuclear sub. I would be interested to know if the japanese reactors run "hot" or "cold". Could make all the difference.

Actually the Japanese culture is quite the opposite...and saving face is a big piece of what's going on here. My guess is that some of the executives involved right now will probably slide quietly out of public view after this is all said and done as well, perhaps as the result of suicide.

You are correct, though, in that they are trying to cast things as positively as possible to also prevent additional wide spread panic. However, I think any living breathing person that sees explosions at a power plant of any kind, is going to quickly realize that things aren't going as well as they should be.

 

[A5guy]

I think the media is doing what it does best- blowing this out of all proportion. This is not another Chernobyl.
Fukushima Nuclear Accident – a simple and accurate explanation BraveNewClimate

 

[singlestacksig]

i doubt a problem of wrong connectors was an issue.
because at that level of amps you are often using just the bare end of the cable , clamped into your connection point.

last night i did read a news report that at least one of the hook up points was in a lower level area and flooded..

 

[BigMatt]

Hindsight my arse, not when you're dealing with a nuclear power plant.
Not a personal thing directed at any of you, but I know what it means to plan for all contingencies.

You can't plan for all contingencies. Well I guess you could...

What if they build the plant to handle an asteroid hitting right after a dragon crashes into the side of the building all before Hitler comes back to life only he is 85' tall and takes the top off of mount Fuji and starting a lava flow in the plant's general direction?

My point is, if you are going to plan for a 15 on the richter scale (does it go that high?) earthquake followed by a 100' high tsunami, you might as well be planning for all of these things. If you are planning for EVERYTHING, you will make the plant too expensive to build.

 

[mrjarrell]

If you are planning for EVERYTHING, you will make the plant too expensive to build.

It would appear that that's what he would like to see. I, for one, am amazed that the plants have held up as well as they have, considering what they've been through. They were hit by the quake AND a tsunami. And they have managed to survive, so far. That's a testament to good engineering.

 

[printcraft]

Originally Posted by 03A3
...just keep on toying with the worst thing man has ever invented.

Jersey Shore?!

 

[ArmedProgrammer]

You can't plan for all contingencies. Well I guess you could...

What if they build the plant to handle an asteroid hitting right after a dragon crashes into the side of the building all before Hitler comes back to life only he is 85' tall and takes the top off of mount Fuji and starting a lava flow in the plant's general direction?

My point is, if you are going to plan for a 15 on the richter scale (does it go that high?) earthquake followed by a 100' high tsunami, you might as well be planning for all of these things. If you are planning for EVERYTHING, you will make the plant too expensive to build.

You left out Gawdzirra....

But that doesn't make your point any less valid.

 

[Lead Head]

It may have already been said but the Fukushima plant is 1/3rd of Japan's electrical power. This sadly means (on top of everything else) that they will have to limit/cut power to some areas until further notice.

I bet most have lamp oil, candles and emergency supplies but this disaster is big and these things only last so long. At least they don't have to worry about heating since it's sub-tropical for the most part. People on Mt. Fuji might not agree, but why would you live on or near a volcano ?

Either way, some areas may not see electricity for some time.

The Japanese people are resilient and may just show some of us how to deal with yet another SHTF condition. This appears to be a peaceful situation and so far I haven't heard any reports of looting or other levels of mindless urban dumbassery.

 

[hoosiertriangle]

The real problem with the Japanese nuke plant was that it was 40 years old (just like all of our plants). These plants are antiques when compared with modern designs, such as those in France. The old plants all require electricity to pump cooling water into the reactors. Modern designs rely on passive cooling such that no pumps are required to prevent a melt down.

We need to embrace nuclear technology here in the US and quickly. This is technology, fuel, and jobs we can manufacture and build right here without dependence on foreign investment.

 

[CarmelHP]

At least they don't have to worry about heating since it's sub-tropical for the most part.

It's a temperate climate. The overnight temperatures were near freezing on the evening after the strongest quake.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

It's a temperate climate. The overnight temperatures were near freezing on the evening after the strongest quake.

Not to forget the amount of the country that's mountainous.

up in altitude = drop in temperature

 

[ThrottleJockey]

And to think, Toshiba or Mitsubishi or something....want to sell us all mini reactors to put in our house....

 

[E5RANGER375]

Luddite worldview lol.
Oh well, just keep on toying with the worst thing man has ever invented.

The helicopter ejection seat?

Reality TV.

Richard Simmons