Japan Earthquake | Page 2059

  • Off to get some work done.
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 3:37:51 PM

  • wow, another good news :

    Kan indicates possibly remaining premier beyond August [!!!!!]


    TOKYO, Aug. 1, Kyodo english.kyodonews.jp
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:39:21 PM

  • URGENT: M6.1 quake jolts Shizuoka Pref., vicinity

    TOKYO, Aug. 2, Kyodo

    An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.1 jolted Shizuoka Prefecture and its vicinity late Monday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

    The agency said there may be some changes in sea levels due to the 11:58 p.m. quake but no damage is expected.

    The quake measured lower 5 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the town of Higashiizu and the cities of Shizuoka and Yaizu, and 4 in areas in Kanagawa, Yamanashi, Nagano and Shizuoka prefectures as well as remote islands of Tokyo, the agency said. english.kyodonews.jp
    by Edano edited by elainekirk 8/1/2011 3:41:27 PM

  • Japan plans 2-phase radiation tests on rice

    TOKYO, Aug. 1, Kyodo

    The farm ministry plans to conduct two-phase radiation tests on rice after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami destroyed the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant and resulted in radiation leaks, ministry officials said Monday.

    The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries intends to first conduct sampling tests on rice before this year's harvesting in a wide range of regions to narrow down areas for second-phase tests on harvested rice, ministry officials said.

    In the sampling tests, inspectors will measure radioactive cesium levels in unmilled rice in each region. If rice is found contaminated with radioactive cesium exceeding the government-set allowable limit of 500 becquerels per kilogram in a region, the ministry may ban all farmers in that region from shipping rice.
    english.kyodonews.jp
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:42:30 PM

  • huu, lots of news today...
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:43:52 PM

  • ready ;)
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:44:11 PM

  • @ Edano... I wonder, have you run into any place that shows ground motion from the EQ's that we could translate to the units?
    by dean 8/1/2011 3:45:49 PM

  • very good news updates.. Edano... ty
    by dean 8/1/2011 3:46:00 PM

  • @dean the latest earthquakes ? no.
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:46:50 PM

  • i found an interesting site: www.jma.go.jp
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:50:19 PM

  • www.jma.go.jp

    Increase of the risk of the submergence and flood during the spring tide associated with the ground sink caused by the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake www.jma.go.jp

    by Edano via Jma.go.jp 8/1/2011 3:52:39 PM

  • @ edano if fuku gets submerged even a little there ..it doesn't bear thinking about
    by elainekirk 8/1/2011 3:58:30 PM

  • @elainekirk 50 cm.
    by Edano 8/1/2011 3:59:54 PM

  • is that it another 50?
    by elainekirk 8/1/2011 4:01:49 PM

  • iisn't the plant that had accident in 99 near the latest quake ?
    by elainekirk 8/1/2011 4:04:28 PM

  • @Edano Earlier referred to as a "seawall". A Concrete wall underground to prevent ground water from seeping into the ocean. No hurry here. Big job and lots of time. IIRC the ground water only migrates a few inches per (year?). anyway, it moves very slowly. The surface and basement level control of rad liquid is much more important right now.
    by RBeaner 8/1/2011 4:42:33 PM

  • In Le Monde: Record level of radiation measured in Fukushima. With google translate: translate.google.fr
    by Olivier 8/1/2011 5:42:55 PM

  • www.jma.go.jp
    some interesting statistics about the 3/11 earthquake www.jma.go.jp

    by Edano via Jma.go.jp 8/1/2011 5:51:57 PM

  • Yoko Ono calls on people to show power of Hiroshima to the world
    Yoko Ono, a New York-based artist and the widow of former Beatle John Lennon, called on people to promote the power of Hiroshima -- a city rebuilt from ashes after being devastated by a U.S. atomic bomb in 1945 -- while in the city on Friday to receive the Hiroshima Art Prize.
    "Let's show the people of the world the power of Hiroshima, which has risen from the point where it lost everything," Ono said at the awards ceremony held at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art.
    Ono also touched upon the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, saying, she is "mortified" to see Japan become the only country that has twice suffered massive damage caused by radiation, referring to this year's nuclear power plant disaster and the atomic bombings during World War II.
    More: mdn.mainichi.jp
    by joniver 8/1/2011 5:56:13 PM

  • seems someone has tamed the tea party ...
    by Edano 8/1/2011 6:04:44 PM

  • More on the high rad by #1 www.sfgate.com
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 6:05:09 PM

  • The late nuclear power plant worker Nobuyuki Shimahashi's radiation exposure monitoring databook indicated "Y" or yes for jobs he could engage in before some of them were corrected to say "N" or no.

    Of 10 nuclear power plant workers who have developed cancer and received workers' compensation in the past, nine had been exposed to less than 100 millisieverts of radiation, it has been learned.

    The revelation comes amid reports that a number of workers battling the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant were found to have been exposed to more than the emergency limit of 250 millisieverts, which was raised from the previous limit of 100 millisieverts in March.

    According to Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry statistics, of the 10 nuclear power plant workers, six had leukemia, two multiple myeloma and another two lymphatic malignancy. Only one had been exposed to 129.8 millisieverts but the remaining nine were less than 100 millisieverts, including one who had been exposed to about 5 millisieverts.
    Nobuyuki Shimahashi, a worker at the Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plant, where operations were recently suspended by Chubu Electric Power Co., died of leukemia in 1991 at age 29. His 74-year-old mother Michiko remembers her son dropping from 80 kilograms to 50 kilograms and his gums bleeding.
    More: mdn.mainichi.jp

    by joniver via I1235.photobucket 8/1/2011 6:06:06 PM

  • @joniver i thought they made a law that 100mSv poses no harm to human health ?
    by Edano 8/1/2011 6:08:32 PM

  • Aircounter: Japan Gets Mini Radiation Detector
    The nuclear crisis in Fukushima has yet to come to an end, and most of the radiation meters out there are expensive and usually sold in special-interest stores only: reason enough for Japan-based chemicals company S.T. Corp decided to bring the so-called Aircounter [JP] to market.
    The device, developed in partnership with the Tokyo Metropolitan University, is essentially a handheld radiation detector that’s cheaper, looks nicer and is easier to use than most radiation detectors out there.
    The device is able to detect radiation levels between 0.05 to 9.99 microsieverts per hour at a height of about 1m above the ground (the process takes about 10 minutes to complete). It’s sized at just 82×62×34mm (LCD: 40mm×25mm), weighs 105g and needs two AAA batteries to run (which are enough for about a month when used daily for one hour).
    More: www.washingtonpost.com
    by joniver 8/1/2011 6:10:06 PM

  • @Edano The law seems to be uh...fluid.
    by joniver 8/1/2011 6:12:31 PM

  • @Edano

    by elainekirk via Home-education.biz 8/1/2011 6:12:52 PM

  • 7/31 3:57 there was the 6.4 eq
    7/31 17:00 a radiation spike in #1 of 356 Sv/h www.tepco.co.jp
    a similar spike we had april 8 after the 7.1 quake. i don't know what it means...
    www.houseoffoust.com

    by Edano via Houseoffoust 8/1/2011 6:15:53 PM

  • @elainekirk don't bite me !
    by Edano 8/1/2011 6:16:14 PM

  • @Edano :)
    by elainekirk 8/1/2011 6:22:25 PM

  • Some of the big steam shows were post small quakes. Maybe it is moving corium?
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 6:25:35 PM

  • @lillymunster sounds feasible
    by elainekirk 8/1/2011 6:27:29 PM

  • by elainekirk 8/1/2011 6:31:12 PM

  • @lillymunster: the radiation patterns in #1 do not follow the earthquakes. we had lots of eq in april and very few in june, steadily decreasing. there is no obvious connection. i just checked the major bumps >6.0 .
    by Edano 8/1/2011 6:32:30 PM

  • @Edano ah, I thought you were referring to 3.
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 6:33:36 PM

  • @lillymunster #3 has quite "clean" graphs. nothing extraordinary
    www.houseoffoust.com

    by Edano via Houseoffoust 8/1/2011 6:36:53 PM

  • Interesting study on cancer rates with nuclear workers. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
    A UK study that heart attacks may be tied to exposure levels www.timesonline.co.uk
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 6:40:51 PM

  • Voices of Protest Spreading on Youtube in Japan
    Just as Weibo is providing an outlet for opposing voices in China, a number of YouTube videos have been acting as vehicles for protest in Japan. The recent clip of Fukushima residents dramatically confronting government officials has been getting lots of attention online. But over the weekend, a new video has been picking up steam.


    Translation:
    Next, Witness Kodama, please. I am Kodama, head of the Radioisotope Center at the University of Tokyo. I was astounded on March 15. We, at the Tokyo University, have 27 Radioisotope Centers and are responsible for radiation protection and decontamination. I am a physician myself and have been involved in decontamination work at facilities in Tokyo University.

    We detected 5 microsieverts/hour radiation in Tokai-mura in Ibaraki Prefecture about 9AM on March 15, and notified the Ministry of Education and Science as the “Article 10 notification” [as specified in the Nuclear Disaster Countermeasures Law].

    Later, the radiation exceeding 0.5 microsievert/hour was detected in Tokyo. This level soon went down. And then on March 21 it rained in Tokyo, and with the rain came 0.2 microsievert/hour radiation, and this I believe is the reason for the elevated radiation level to this day.

    Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano said at that time, “There is no immediate effect on health”. I actually thought this was going to be a big, big problem. Why was I concerned? Because the current Radiation Damage Prevention Law is based on dealing with a small amount of radioactive materials that emit very high radiation.
    The rest of it: http://www.penn-olson.com/2011/08/01/japan-youtube-protest/

    by joniver 8/1/2011 6:42:29 PM

  • From the transcript (much more info via the link) : "So, using our knowledge base at the Radioisotope Center, we calculated. Based on the thermal output, it is 29.6 times the amount released by the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

    In uranium equivalent, it is 20 Hiroshima bombs."
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 6:47:48 PM

  • @lillymunster @joniver wow
    by Edano 8/1/2011 6:48:29 PM

  • @Edano read his whole speech, he gets into lots of medical detail
    by lillymunster 8/1/2011 6:54:04 PM

  • More: Translation
    In this case, the total amount of radioactive materials is not much of an issue. What matters is how high the radiation is.

    However, in the case of the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident, 5 microsieverts within 100-kilometer radius [he is referring to Tokai-mura], 0.5 microsievert within 200-kilometer radius [referring to Tokyo area], and the radiation extended far beyond, even to teas in Ashigara and Shizuoka, as everybody now knows.

    When we research the radiation injury/sickness, we look at the total amount of radioactive materials. But there is no definite report from TEPCO or the Japanese government as to exactly how much radioactive materials have been released from Fukushima.

    So, using our knowledge base at the Radioisotope Center, we calculated. Based on the thermal output, it is 29.6 times the amount released by the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

    In uranium equivalent, it is 20 Hiroshima bombs.

    What is more frightening is that whereas the radiation from a nuclear bomb will decrease to one-thousandth in one year, the radiation from a nuclear power plant will only decrease to one-tenth.

    In other words, we should recognize from the start that just like Chernobyl, Fukushima I Nuclear Plant has released radioactive materials equivalent in the amount to tens of nuclear bombs, and the resulting contamination is far worse than the contamination by a nuclear bomb.
    by joniver 8/1/2011 7:00:34 PM

  • More:
    From a systems biological viewpoint, if the total amount is small, you only have to consider respective amount on each person.However, when a vast amount of radioactive materials is released, they are in particles. Dispersion of particles is non-linear, and it’s one of the most difficult calculations in the fluid dynamics.

    The nuclear fuel is like sands buried in synthetic resin, but once the fuel melts down, a large amount of super-fine particles is released.

    What happens then? The problem like the contaminated rice hay happens. For example, in Fujiwara-cho in Iwate prefecture rice hay with 57,000Bq/kg was found. Osaki in Miyagi Prefecture 17,000Bq/kg,

    In Minami-Soma City in Fukushima Prefecture 106,000Bq/kg, and in Shirakawa City in Fukushima 97,000Bq/kg, and Iwate 64,000Bq/kg. The pattern of contamination does not follow concentric circles. It depends on the weather. It also depends on where the particles landed – on the material that absorbs water, for example.

    We at the Radioisotope Center have been helping Minami Soma City in the decontamination effort. We’ve done seven decontaminations so far.

    When we went to Minami Soma for the first time, there was only one geiger counter.
    by joniver 8/1/2011 7:01:29 PM

  • More: On March 19 when the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries supposedly issued the notice [on the cattle feed], food, water, and gasoline were about to be depleted in the city. The mayor of Minami Soma made a plea for help on the Internet, which was widely viewed.

    In that kind of situation, no one would look at a piece of paper from the Ministry, no one would know. Farmers didn’t know that rice hay was in danger. Still, they bought the feed from abroad, paying hundreds of thousands of yen, and started to feed the cows with the same groundwater that they drank.

    So, what should we do now? We have to guarantee that the thorough radiation measurement is done in the contaminated area.

    As I said before, there was only one geiger counter in Minami Soma City when we went there in May.

    In fact, there were 20 personal survey meters provided by the US military. But no one at the city’s Board of Education could understand the English manual until we went there and told them how to use them. That’s how it is there.
    by joniver 8/1/2011 7:02:35 PM

  • "As to the food inspection, there are more advanced survey meters than germanium counters, such as semiconductor imaging detectors. Why doesn’t the Japanese government spend money in utilizing them? After 3 months, the government has done no such thing, and I am shaking with anger.

    Second, I have been in charge of antibody drugs at the Cabinet Office since Mr. Obuchi was the prime minister [1998-]. We put radioisotopes to antibody drugs to treat cancer. In other words, my job is to inject radioisotopes into human bodies, so my utmost concern is the internal radiation exposure and that is what I have been studying intensely.

    So, I’d like to explain the mechanism of how internal radiation exposure occurs. The biggest problem of internal radiation is cancer. How does cancer happen? Because radiation cuts DNA strands. As you know, DNA is in a double helix. When it is in a double helix it is extremely stable.

    However, when a cell divides, the double helix becomes single strands, doubles and becomes 4 strands. This stage is the most vulnerable.

    Therefore, the fetuses and small children, with cells that rapidly divide, are most susceptible to radiation danger. Even for adults, there are cells that rapidly divide such as hair, blood cells and intestinal epitheria, and they can be damaged by radiation.

    Let me give you an example of what we know about internal radiation exposure. One genetic mutation does not cause cancer. After the initial hit by radiation, it needs a different trigger for a cell to mutate into a cancer cell, which is called “driver mutation” or “passenger mutation”. For details please refer to the attached document about the cases in Chernobyl and cesium.

    Alpha radiation is most famous. I was startled when I learned of a professor at Tokyo University who said it was safe to drink plutonium. Alpha radiation is the most dangerous radiation. It causes thorotrast liver damage, as we, liver specialists, know very well. Internal radiation is frequently referred to as such-and-such millisieverts, but it is utterly meaningless:.
    by joniver 8/1/2011 7:03:36 PM

  • "Iodine-131 goes to thyroid gland, and thorotrast goes to liver, and cesium goes to urothelium and urinary bladder. Whole body scan is utterly meaningless unless you look at these parts in the body where radiation accumulates.

    Thorotrast was a contrast medium used in Germany since 1890. It was used in Japan since 1930, but it was found that 25 to 30% of people developed liver cancer 20 to 30 years later.

    Why does it take so long before cancer develops? Thorotrast is an alpha-radiation nuclide. Alpha radiation injures nearby cells, and the DNA that is harmed most is a gene called “P53”.

    We now know, thanks to genome science, the entire sequence of human DNA. However, there are 3 million locations on the DNA that are different from person to person. So today, it doesn’t make sense at all to proceed as if all humans are the same.

    The basic principle should be the “personalized medicine” when we look at internal radiation – which DNA is damaged, and what kind of change is taking place.

    In case of thorotrast, it is proven that P53 is damaged in the first stage, and it takes 20 to 30 years for the 2nd, 3rd mutations to occur, causing liver cancer and leukemia.

    About iodine-131. As you know, iodine accumulates in thyroid gland, and that is most noticeable during the formative phase of thyroid gland, i.e. in small children. However, when the first researcher in Ukraine was saying in 1991 “There are an increasing number of thyroid cancer,” researchers in Japan and the US were publishing articles in Nature magazine saying “There is no causal relationship between the radiation and thyroid cancer.”
    by joniver 8/1/2011 7:04:52 PM

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