Japan Earthquake

Japan Earthquake | Page 984

Helicopter just flew near plant and afterwards the plume from 3 became visible.
by LM 5/5/2011 3:34:46 AM

@LM missed that. Can you catch screen dumps of anything interesting?
by Cat 5/5/2011 3:37:15 AM

@Cat I'll try but I'm on and off at the moment.
by LM 5/5/2011 3:38:53 AM

see you all later
by Cat 5/5/2011 3:43:26 AM

Night Cat!
by LM 5/5/2011 3:45:07 AM

chopper flew by
by marie rich 5/5/2011 3:49:51 AM

flew by again,,,hmmm
by marie rich 5/5/2011 3:50:36 AM

maybe the chopper is doing the airborne monitoring. I see lots of steam from 2-4
by marie rich 5/5/2011 3:53:01 AM

@Marie rich I hope that's what they're doing. It's definitely needed!
by LM 5/5/2011 3:55:39 AM

looks like the tepco execs in the sauna are sending out smoke signals "bring beer", and the chopper is delivering
by marie rich 5/5/2011 3:57:33 AM

LOL... Night all!
by LM 5/5/2011 4:06:43 AM

Breaking News
BreakingNews Breaking News
Japan update: Workers at Unit 1 Dai-ichi nuke plant installing 6 ventilation machines to absorb radiation from air inside - AP
9 minutes ago
by Jim Carver 5/5/2011 4:08:38 AM

night,LM
by marie rich 5/5/2011 4:10:05 AM

Workers entered the No. 1 nuclear reactor building at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant Thursday for the first time since the complex was damaged by the March 11 mega earthquake and subsequent tsunami, as part of efforts to install a cooling system at the No. 1 reactor, Tokyo Electric Power Co. officials said. --Kyodo
by Jim Carver 5/5/2011 4:13:33 AM

Area Buletin from JTWC-( www.usno.navy.mil)
ABPW10

PGTW 041430
MSGID/GENADMIN/NAVMARFCSTCEN PEARL HARBOR HI/JTWC//
SUBJ/SIGNIFICANT TROPICAL WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THE WESTERN AND
/SOUTH PACIFIC OCEANS/REISSUED/041430Z-050600ZMAY2011//
REF/A/MDG/NAVMARFCSTCEN PEARL HARBOR HI/ 041351ZMAY2011//
AMPN/REF A IS TROPICAL CYCLONE FORMATION ALERT.//
RMKS/
1. WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC AREA (180 TO MALAY PENINSULA):
A. TROPICAL CYCLONE SUMMARY: NONE.
B. TROPICAL DISTURBANCE SUMMARY:
(1) THE AREA OF CONVECTION PREVIOUSLY LOCATED NEAR 8.3N
131.3E, IS NOW LOCATED NEAR 9.4N 129.0E, APPROXIMATELY 180 NM EAST
OF MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES. ANIMATED INFRARED SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWS
AN IMPROVED LOW LEVEL CIRCULATION CENTER (LLCC) ASSOCIATED WITH
INCREASED DEEP CONVECTION ALTHOUGH STILL UNORGANIZED. A 041116Z
SSMIS MICROWAVE IMAGE DEPICTS IMPROVED LOW LEVEL INFLOW AND A
040922Z WINDSAT PASS DEPICTS A WELL-DEFINED LLCC WITH 15 TO 20 KNOT
CENTRAL WINDS. ADDITIONALLY, A BUOY APPROXIMATELY 100 NM AWAY IS
REPORTING A 1005 MB SEA LEVEL PRESSURE AND FAVORABLE SEA SURFACE
TEMPERATURES OF 29 DEGREES CELSIUS. UPPER LEVEL ANALYSIS INDICATES
THE LLCC IS LOCATED BENEATH THE RIDGE AXIS IN AN AREA OF LOW
VERTICAL WIND SHEAR AND EXCELLENT UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE. MAXIMUM
SUSTAINED SURFACE WINDS ARE ESTIMATED AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS. MINIMUM SEA
LEVEL PRESSURE IS ESTIMATED TO BE NEAR 1005 MB. SEE REF A (WTPN21
PGTW 041400) FOR FURTHER DETAILS. THE POTENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT
OF A SIGNIFICANT TROPICAL CYCLONE WITHIN THE NEXT 24 HOURS IS
UPGRADED TO GOOD.
(2) NO OTHER SUSPECT AREAS.
2. SOUTH PACIFIC AREA (WEST COAST OF SOUTH AMERICA TO 135 EAST):
A. TROPICAL CYCLONE SUMMARY: NONE.
B. TROPICAL DISTURBANCE SUMMARY: NONE.
3. JUSTIFICATION FOR REISSUE: UPGRADED AREA IN PARA 1.B.(1) TO
GOOD.//
NNNN

Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert WTPN21
Issued at 04/1400Z
WTPN21

PGTW 041400
MSGID/GENADMIN/NAVMARFCSTCEN PEARL HARBOR HI/JTWC//
SUBJ/TROPICAL CYCLONE FORMATION ALERT//
RMKS/
1. FORMATION OF A SIGNIFICANT TROPICAL CYCLONE IS POSSIBLE WITHIN
160 NM EITHER SIDE OF A LINE FROM 9.0N 129.6E TO 11.6N 126.6E
WITHIN THE NEXT 12 TO 24 HOURS. AVAILABLE DATA DOES NOT JUSTIFY
ISSUANCE OF NUMBERED TROPICAL CYCLONE WARNINGS AT THIS TIME.
WINDS IN THE AREA ARE ESTIMATED TO BE 15 TO 20 KNOTS. METSAT IM-
AGERY AT 041200Z INDICATES THAT A CIRCULATION CENTER IS LOCATED
NEAR 9.4N 129.0E. THE SYSTEM IS MOVING WEST-NORTHWESTWARD AT 11
KNOTS.
2. REMARKS: THE AREA OF CONVECTION PREVIOUSLY LOCATED NEAR 8.3N
131.3E, IS NOW LOCATED NEAR 9.4N 129.0E, APPROXIMATELY 180 NM EAST
OF MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES. ANIMATED INFRARED SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWS
AN IMPROVED LOW LEVEL CIRCULATION CENTER (LLCC) ASSOCIATED WITH
INCREASED DEEP CONVECTION ALTHOUGH STILL UNORGANIZED. A 041116Z
SSMIS MICROWAVE IMAGE DEPICTS IMPROVED LOW LEVEL INFLOW AND A
040922Z WINDSAT PASS DEPICTS A WELL-DEFINED LLCC WITH 15 TO 20 KNOT
CENTRAL WINDS. ADDITIONALLY, A BUOY APPROXIMATELY 100 NM AWAY IS
REPORTING A 1005 MB SEA LEVEL PRESSURE AND FAVORABLE SEA SURFACE
TEMPERATURES OF 29 DEGREES CELSIUS. UPPER LEVEL ANALYSIS INDICATES
THE LLCC IS LOCATED BENEATH THE RIDGE AXIS IN AN AREA OF LOW
VERTICAL WIND SHEAR AND EXCELLENT UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE. MAXIMUM
SUSTAINED SURFACE WINDS ARE ESTIMATED AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS. MINIMUM SEA
LEVEL PRESSURE IS ESTIMATED TO BE NEAR 1005 MB. THE POTENTIAL FOR
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SIGNIFICANT TROPICAL CYCLONE WITHIN THE NEXT 24
HOURS IS UPGRADED TO GOOD.
3. THIS ALERT WILL BE REISSUED, UPGRADED TO WARNING OR CANCELLED BY
051400Z.//
NNNN

Development image-
www.usno.navy.mil
Sat image-
www.usno.navy.mil
My assessment….Currently most likely to impact the Philippines land mass, intensity relatively low(Possibly just a TD). Most models indicate exactly this, low intensity, steering (track/path) directly west or west north west. Has STR (sub tropical ridge) blocking direct Northward movement currently and located to the north is a high shear environment, should it adopt a northward track shear environment should stop any significant development occurring or completely destroy the system, really doesn’t have the time and space before land interaction with the Philippine land mass to develop into a worrisome system(in regards to the Japan situation). Again….I am NO meteorologist, recommend keeping an eye on this one but likely hood of seriously affecting the Japanese coastline seems extremely low at the current time (IMHO).
by Thunder via Usno.navy.mil 5/5/2011 4:51:22 AM

@Thunder thanks. That is what could really screw up the whole rest of the country is not just the impact of a typhoon but the associated circular wind patters that would spread the releases to the whole of the country, not to mention the Korean peninsula
by bo 5/5/2011 4:59:33 AM

@Bo, there is already circular wind paterns moving over the country, has been since the start, usually associated with "cold" low pressure systems moving across the northern parts. Have watched a few "biggies", lots of vorticity(circular (generally upward) movement of air), they however don't carry as much potential for a high wind enviroment like an extratropical system-that's a typhoon/hurricane/cyclone that has moved from a tropical area into a non-tropical one....if that makes sense?
by Thunder 5/5/2011 5:04:37 AM

@Thunder yeah, so sad. My sense here in Hiroshima is that we have dodged much of the plumes (obviously not entirely) since the wind tends not to blow this way. Is your sense that this is mostly wishful thinking?
by bo 5/5/2011 5:08:25 AM

@Bo, generally speaking, remembering I am no expert at all, especially when it comes to the Northern hemisphere, you would have dodged the worst..... most of the time, occasionally there were some big blows I watched that may have pushed things that far....maybe? But I would rather be in Hiroshima than in the North....stay safe brother!

by Thunder 5/5/2011 5:14:12 AM

@Thunder thanks much. I have been monitoring the levels here at my home and they have remained fairly low, although alpha exposure is hard to track and food exposure almost impossible to determine. We are thankful our exposures are relatively low but our hearts week for those up north.
by bo 5/5/2011 5:16:47 AM

@Bo, no problems...I am happy to try and help any way I can! I hope you stay safe and hopefully @Nancy gets some good info put together to help those in Japan make the right choices about food and possible contamination! Again.....Stay safe!!! Good talking to you!
by Thunder 5/5/2011 5:22:10 AM

@bo Hi! I've been checking out the news for the workers going into #1.
by Jim Carver 5/5/2011 5:38:15 AM

What a dangerous job, but we'll know a lot more once a live person has gone in there. I just hope they stay that way.
by Jim Carver 5/5/2011 5:43:08 AM

oh well, guess i got here a little late. say g'nite Gracie
by Jim Carver 5/5/2011 5:45:04 AM

Under Pressure...
Six ventilation units will be installed on the turbine building side of double-entry doors leading to the reactor building to remove air in the reactor building via hoses, TEPCO said. To prevent highly radioactive air from leaking into the turbine building during ventilation, a positive pressure house will be built to cover the doors, which will be left open to provide space for the hoses to be laid, according to the company.
www.yomiuri.co.jp
by Rob in SF 5/5/2011 5:56:31 AM

@Jim Carver back now. Is there much reporting on what is going on in there with the workers yet?
by bo 5/5/2011 6:21:56 AM

Hi @bo I was looking into the schools issue and it is only my opinion but I can give a basic run through
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 6:46:32 AM

@Angie doing just fine here in Hiroshima. It is still Golden Week in Japan so it is holiday time and things are mellow. Everyone in Japan knows the intense heat is not far. June is rainy season in Japan, so that does not bode well in terms of flushing out more particulates everywhere. @elainekirk that would be great. Thanks.
by bo 5/5/2011 6:47:50 AM

@bo I am glad that you are doing good! I dont think I would be looking forward to June either!
by Angie 5/5/2011 6:51:49 AM

@bo I will just copy the mail I sent Nancy it is only opinion I could be completely wrong but..
the update for shareholders that tepco issued www.tepco.co.jp
What interests me most is the compensation blurb.
It is quite clear that tepco are liable and I am still thinking about the schools.
The GOJ seem unable to stand up and completely inform their citizens and in saying schools are to have a high level is maybe meant to act as a red rag ..... If the parents do not want their children to be in that environment then they have to go to tepco.
All goj are saying is that schools in this area will not guarantee safe levels they have no responsibility beyond that and logically they cannot provide any education in that area but they have to provide an education so that is what they are doing -for those parents who want to use it.
The only avenue open to parents is to relocate and demand the funding for relocation from tepco for Japan to close the schools they would have to change the laws that oblige them to provide an education.
It is yet another case of 'lets keep it simple for the masses' tepco with their 1.54 billion per day turnover are nothing more than a mafia outfit imho
and in the hope the author wont mind here is a bit of her reply
What will really cause a problem is if these people try
to force TEPCO to help them move or compensate them for the cost and
their losses TEPCO will use the excuse that the GoJ didn't declare and
evacuation and the levels were within this new high maximum so schools
were open therefore they owe these people nothing. It is a straight
out of the book lawyer tactic.
.
back to my opinion -The only option open to parents is to home educate their children
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 6:53:04 AM

@Angie last year the rainy season extended into half of July here. Very very wet. Often the ground is so saturated that the water just runs off and all the rivers bulge. Then all of that water steams right back out as humidity for the rest of intense summer. All not good.
by bo 5/5/2011 6:53:21 AM

@elainekirk that sounds pretty spot on to me. Many of my Japanese friends tell me, and it seems true from my experience, that it is very difficult to say harsh things directly. Hence the statements in the first weeks that the GOJ "cannot say the reactors are not experiencing melting of fuel." That means "fuel IS melting." It may be that the GOJ is triangulating to force the issue. Obviously much more bold and certainly much quicker action is required, but will likely not follow. I know it is the American in me, but it sure seems like there is a tremendous opportunity for a politician to step up and demand bold action and protection for the children, and the citizens up there. I would imagine the majority of the people here, all of whom are grappling with uncertainty and lack of information, would respond to such a stance. I'm sure this just shows my political naivete, since what corporation would back such a politician.
by bo 5/5/2011 7:08:25 AM

@bo watching this unfolding in Japan I can see they are just further ahead than most countries on the journey to corporations running the country and citizens being nothing more than the workforce scary very scary to be owned from birth sounds to be the future. When corporations can dictate your childs environment then something has gone very very wrong
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 7:12:16 AM

@elainekirk as in so many things, it offers benefits and sacrifices. As an American it seems hard to give up so much individual choice and expression, but many of my Japanese friends feel that it is also tied to the fact that there is so little crime and the efficient operation of much of the society. That said, almost everyone I know here prides themselves that in some way they are different and outside of the beliefs of the group. This may reflect that they are all English speakers, and so have chosen an odd path. As an American lefty, I have been amazed at the pro-corporate sentiment so common here. I am an iPhone user, so I am with a smaller cell company while most people I know are with DoCoMo, the cell company of NTT, the national phone company. My friend wondered why I didn't also use them (iPhone exclusivity is why) but he said there is a Japanese saying, when you need support, lean against the largest tree. The downside, so very obvious now, is as you say, corporations can dictate what toxins are "acceptable" for children. I don't know what the future brings in Japan, but it seems most of my friends are resigned that it is a collective one in which centralized powers call the shots. I have been amazed, for example, that everyone seems to have internalized the notion that individuals and families need to cut back on electricity use in order to help. This is obviously not bad, but there is very little outcry that businesses need to do this as well. All of the neon remains on all night, and so do the vending machines found roughly every ten feet.
by bo 5/5/2011 7:20:53 AM

@bo that has amazed me with the electricity !! it is as though every highway is illuminated as well as the billboards etc companies certainly don't work by example they work by coercion - terrible ethics
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 7:28:51 AM

@elainekirk just as it seems that the support for farms, fisheries and dairies is apparently not going to come from TEPCO but instead at the expense of public health, it is a classic case of socializing the risk rather than tapping those who profited for decades. It seems as though the public will be forced to bear the brunt of the crisis rather than TEPCO, whether it is through taxpayer support, or through channeling contaminated products into the food supply. Clearly everyone wishes it were different, but it seems no one expects it to be.
by bo 5/5/2011 7:33:07 AM

Evacuees who lived within the 20 km safety-zone the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant will have to wait for almost a year they can find out if they will be allowed back into their homes.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan held a news conference Wednesday at which he said the government will wait until 2012 to decided whether it is safe for residents to go back home. He made the announcement in Kazo, Saitama Prefecture, where some of the residents have been forced to stay.
www.tokyotimes.jp

They cannot be allowed to do this surely these houses will not be habitable !! is this just a way of saving tepco having to compensate?
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 7:33:47 AM

@elainekirk, this is just a way of not saying now. The same happened to those evacuated from Bikini in 1946. They were told that it was only temporary, but slowly many realized that they would never go back. That is clearly known regarding those displaced from homes inside the exclusion zone, but the logic (colonial benevolence) is that it would add to their current level of trauma and distress. Very obviously, not knowing, harboring false expectations and so forth will add dramatically to their distress as well, but like the health effects of radiation exposure, you can kick this can down the road a bit before people realize the situation.
by bo 5/5/2011 7:42:37 AM

@bo I am coming to the conclusion that tepco's financial wellbeing is the over-riding concern
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 7:54:29 AM

@elainekirk it is the Nihongo translation of "What is good for GM....."
by bo 5/5/2011 7:56:12 AM

@elainekirk no problem, I am also busy working on arranging a research trip to Semipalatinsk later this summer. Now there is a place where I will definitely need a radiation monitor.
by bo 5/5/2011 8:18:27 AM

Ha ha just realised all these headlines about workers going in to unit 1 almost global coverage of an event that we don't know has even happened and if it does they are only going through the door to lay pipes down. So why the mass publicity release after weeks of silence?
Could it be to bury the news about schoolchildren being exposed !!
by elainekirk 5/5/2011 8:47:02 AM

@elainekirk one way to look at it is that they have had absolutely no coverage for so long because they have no idea how to understand or present what is happening. Here we have a "story" promoted by TEPCO and the GOJ that is supposed to demonstrate that they are in control and resolving the situation. Lets hope that it makes some reporters turn back towards the story and cover the things that are not being officially fed to them as well.
by bo 5/5/2011 9:00:21 AM

TEPCO to set up device to cool reactors

The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant will start setting up a system around mid-May to help cool the facility's No.1 reactor.

www3.nhk.or.jp
by Angie edited by elainekirk 5/5/2011 9:05:47 AM

Workers enter reactor building

A team of workers has entered the Reactor Number One building at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant for the first time since the hydrogen explosion the day after the March 11th earthquake and tsunami. www3.nhk.or.jp (I dont think I would of liked to be one of the first group going in....) wonder if we will get some more pictures now??
by Angie edited by elainekirk 5/5/2011 9:08:29 AM