Now that the MSM has moved on to other things, we can take a closer look at radiation.
27 Replies to “Sievert”
Dr. Takashi Nagai, author of “The Bells of Nagasaki” and doctor, was diagnosed with leukemia before the atomic bomb was dropped in Nagasaki. This was due to his working with x-ray film (he was a radiologist). The bomb itself not only caused immense destruction and burns but caused what we know now is radiation sickness. Other diseases and conditions popped up years after. This was due to proximity of the bomb.
The deaths of those at Chernobyl was due chiefly to poor safety standards, particularly no or little safety equipment after the disaster. There has been an increase in a few forms of cancer but nothing as was initially predicted.
It is naive to both over-estimate and under-estimate the effects of radiation.
Just my thoughts. http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Takashi_Nagai http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiation_Effects_Research_Foundation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster#Assessing_the_disaster.27s_effects_on_human_health
More will be poisoned here by iodide than any radiation, due to hysteria
The media thrives on sensationalism and loves to create mass hysteria about their favourite topics.
The current talking point is elevated levels in the food sources but the actual levels are unclear. In Saskatchewan when we burn off the carbon from the coal the resulting ash has elevated levels of radiation, higher than most ore samples from the uranium mines. Illuminous dial wrist watches emmited elevated levels of radiation, in fact it was necessary to remove the watch in order to measure radiation from CRT TV’s in the 60’s. In the 70’s I built radiation measuring devices for the UofR, in the 80’s and 90’s I serviced nuclear gages as well as worked in the uranium mines, which required a radiation badge. In 14 years I only had one reported reading, which was when I left my badge on the dash of my car for 14 days, rather then subjecting it to the airport check on a trip to Toronto.
Another interesting point is that I am schedulded for two mediacal tests this month, the first being a CT scan and the second being a full body bone scan which includes an intervenious injection of a radioactive substance and I wholly expect to live through these procedures. In fact I have lived through them in the past.
I am amazed that the reactors in Japan remain as intact as they are when you look at the devistation that nature has created. I would have liked to see what would relain of wind turbines in this devistation.
In 1957, with atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs still in full swing, I worked in southeastern Saskatchewan for a well logging company. One of our downhole products was a “gamma log”. There were days when we couldn’t run one because there was so much radioactivity in the air that we couldn’t calibrate our instruments on surface.
Imagine how much radioactivity would hit the fan in today’s environment of hysteria if the mess at Fukashima was injecting that kind of pollution into the world’s atmosphere!
Regarding the traces of cesium iodide in food: That’s not the kind of seasoning I’d recommend BUT, we only know about it because modern laboratory techniques are super-sensitive. During the period of atmospheric testing, assorted nasties were found in food even though detection thresholds were many times higher than today. If anyone died of lettuce poisoning, I’m not aware of it.
OT
I look forward to the not-Presentident who criticized a US President for overthrowing a dictator to set plans for Saudi Arabia, Bahrein, Yemen, Syria and, althoguh not Arab but muslim, Iran.
Fianlly!
WUWT?
“Fukushima
By Dr Peter Heller,”.
“There’s no place on earth I would rather be right now than at Fukushima – right in the atomic power plant, at the centre of the event. I say this because I am a physicist and there is no other place that could be more exciting and interesting for a physicist. The same goes for many, if not most physicists and engineers, on the planet.
Already at a young age I knew one day I would study physics.”
[…]
“Mike G. says:
March 20, 2011 at 10:37 am
With 40 years in nuclear, both military and civilian, if such an event were to occur at the nuclear plant near here, the one I retired from, I would be volunteering to go back and help. I’d be willing to do so because I know that any radiation exposure would be within limits that would be unlikely to cause any health problems.
While I’m retired from there, I’m currently back working on contract. Yesterday (Saturday), I went back from a planned 5 week vacation to help review the site’s severe accident management guidelines (SAMG). I’ll be back at it tomorrow.”
…-
“A plea for a return to science on the nuclear power issue”
“I get mail:
German physicist Peter Heller wrote a passionate plea for a return to science on the nuclear power issue, published in German here: http://www.science-skeptical.de/blog/fukushima/004149/
With Dr. Heller’s permission, I’ve translated it in English. But having gone over the content, I think his plea is worthy of a much wider audience – more than what NTZ can offer. So I send this to you with the kind request that you consider publishing it at WUWT.
Best regards,
P Gosselin” http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/03/20/a-plea-for-a-return-to-science-on-the-nuclear-power-issue/#more-36323
John Hinderaker over at Power Line, March 20:
What Really Happened at Fukushima
The most cogent explanation I have seen of the nuclear incident at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant is by Ken Haapala. You can download the whole thing here.* An excerpt:
* http://www.sepp.org/the-week-that-was.cfm
Here’s a small amount of what Power Line quoted (quotation marks at beginning and end):
“. . . Although not confirmed, if the above fairly reflects what took place, then it can be a basis to evaluate some of the more excited claims in the press and by anti-nuclear groups and politicians.
1) The reactors withstood the earthquake significantly above designed strength.
2) Although the primary source of electricity failed, initially the backup systems worked as required.
3) The reactors withstood the tsunami which was above planned height.
4) The tsunami disabled the diesel generated
backup of electricity and the battery backup was either disabled or inadequate.
5) The destruction of the standard communications between the plant operators and corporate and national leaders lead to a slow decision to flood the active reactors with sea water, which destroyed them.
6) The observed ‘explosions’ were chemical, probably burning of free hydrogen.
7) Some meltdown of active reactors probably occurred.
8) Some of the cooling pools overheated, probably exposing the fuel rods and giving off hydrogen and radioactive gases.
9) Thus far, except for the immediate area around the reactors, the radioactivity released has been insignificant.
From this natural disaster, we can learn that properly built nuclear plants can withstand powerful earthquakes and tsunamis. But backup cooling systems and any on-site cooling pools must be protected from any after effects of an earthquake. Cooling pools should be separated from the reactors. Also, solid communications must be available in spite of the scope of the natural disaster.”
Reminds me of my honeymoon trip back in ’86 to Europe; which turned out to be the “Radioactive Love Tour”. 25 years this May!
We had our iodine pills, and stayed away from dairy products, emphasizing beer and wine as it wouldn’t have been contaminated.
Vellcome to East Germany…fortunately most of the wind was blowing from west to east at the time!!
Poor people in Chernobyl didn’t have the same blessings, pretty nasty stuff…
So far no cancer in the family, so I’ll take that we were only minimally exposed.
The radiation exposure on the West Coast of America would be approaching background radiation or next to negligible.
Cheers
Hans-Christian Georg Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
I freely admit to having watched absolutely none of the coverage except for the odd Youtube video here and there.
What are the maximum levels those closest to the reactors are looking to have been exposed to?
I’m not sure if I’ve made this comment before, but I’m a truck driver and one time I picked up what we call a “pet rock”. Basically a big slab of granite or whatever fancy rock that will be made into bricks, countertops, gravestones, etc..
US customs has big yellow scanners that you drive through before going to the booth, they’re for radiation. After going through one and parking, a guy came out with a radiation scanner.
He scanned me and proceeded to scan my entire truck and trailer including the pet rock. After going inside, the unfortunate soul that went through the scanner in the lane beside me at the same time was also in there.
They were asking all sorts of questions, “have you had any medical procedures?”, “have you been in contact with anyone that has?” etc..
I put two and two together, my “pet rock” with extremely low level radiation actually tripped the sensor in the lane next to me.
I am a “NEW”, nuclear energy worker. I have had about 200 mrem of dose in the last 5 years. I work in reactor vaults several times a year when our units are on outage. We have multiple monitors that we have to go through to get to different parts of the plant. I have never set one off. I did however, once set off a monitor going into work because it was pouring rain and I was riding my bike and I had become contaminated with radon.
There is so much misinformation, and lack of knowledge in the general public, in regards to anything scientific, that they gobble anything up as gospel truth, from anyone looking or sounding confident (Suzuki, Gore, Lizard May, etc) It truly is sad.
A lack of high school science education has a large amount to do with it.
There’s people I work who think we’re going to sick here in BC from radiation, because the government refuses to divulge ‘the truth’. So, in conversation, I said to these people,
“we live everyday with background, normal radiation.”
“OH???”
“Yes, perfectly normal. Remember those glow in the dark wrist watches? Radium….radioactive.”
“Huh?”
“Yeah, and you know that trip you took to Mexico? Those flights gave you more radiation than anything that might chance drift over from Japan. The atmosphere is much thinner, allowing more radiation at that altitude.”
“No Way!”
And on the conversation went. Amazing, I swear our generation is functionally illiterate. But, if George Clooney, or Bono says something, it MUST be true…….
Typical MSM “reporting”.
Nuclear Radioactive Cloud Churning It’s Way Across Pacific !!! Will Make Landfall in California Tomorrow !!!!!!!!
Near the bottom of page – However, real scientists say radiation levels will be very low, if detectable at all. A fraction of a tooth xray.
Closing line – However, some hyppies near Haight Ashbury who we’re on CNN know that we all have to kiss our a$$ goodbye.
Pft. SDA just lost all credibility. Everyone knows that the guy running that xkcd site is a lefty scientician. Next you’ll be linking to his cartoons which claim the earth is round, evolution is real, and global warming is happening!
If we can remember (or look up, if you’re young) the Three Mile Island incident, we can learn a few things about GE designed boiling water reactors (BWRs). First, in the TMI incident, a core meltdown occurred and the containment vessel did its job. It is designed in such a manner as to avoid a criticality incident in the event of cooling loss – which is what happened (but due to operator error). In order to improve on the safety of this design, American BWRs were upgraded to include Emergency Core Sprays, Emergency Recirc cooling (driven by the thermal head across the core, not external power), hydrogen spargers and recombiners, and boron injection systems (when all else fails). Whether these measures were emplaced in the Japanese reactors is unknown, but what we can tell is that containment held, and even if the reactors melted down, they do not go critical – that’s a safety feature of the BWR design that has been proven.
So, how does a Chernobyl happen, then, and can such an event take place at Fukushima? Soviet made reactors such as Chernobyl are graphite-modulated (dawn of the nuclear-age technology) that operate without containment. Russia and China are still operating these 50’s era cores today; given what we know of their safety standards THAT’S what I’m worried about.
In any event, it appears that the Fukishima reactors SCRAMed like they were supposed to, any meltdown was contained, the explosions heard were from free hydrogen, and heroic emergency crews have been able to cool the residual heat from the cores and re-flood the spent fuel storage pools. This last bit of information, the cooling water boiling off the spent fuel pools, is the most important: early GE designs did not contemplate the indefinite storage of spent fuel onsite – it was only to be held until shipping to a reprocessing facility could me managed. Given the reality of anti-nuke activists preventing such reprocessing, later designs put the pool in a hardened building where it could languish until a 9.0 earthquake and tsunami could bring it to our attention. And how.
On a few weekly wrapup programs, the MSM, in summarizing the Fukushima events, decried the fact the spent fuel was still stored at the facility, and that was also the practice in the US, and how dangerous it was to do that…..
How often do you scream at your TV? Finally, one more show, they just about came to the same assertion, when it was mentioned at the very end, that the US had built the Yucca mountain facility for storing spent fuel, but its opening was ‘cancelled by government’. While technically true, its a bastardization of what really went down.
MSM….biased, lazy, or both, does it really matter?
What happened to my Apocalypse? They promised me an Apocalypse and I didn’t get it. I’ll never believe them again. /s
X-ray techs, who work on pipeline or plant construction, handle pellets that are similar to those inside those fuel rods. Probably not as refined, but dangerous, none the less. I heard a story from someone who’d worked on an inspection job, in a big factory in Ontario. They somehow lost one of the pellets, and it was picked up by a janitor before they could find it. Apparently, these rods are a funny shape, and the man thought it looked cool. The man took it home to show his family, then set it on the mantle in their living room. Within a month, he and his wife were dead, and their children were recovering in hospital.
I can’t speak to the accuracy of the story, but it gave me a new respect for those X-ray trucks I’ve been working around for so many years.
Now those where some interesting charts.
JMO
For some time now, ever since I heard about the Biological (or Banana) Equivalent Dose, I have been wanting to put these sorts of numbers into something I can understand more clearly. Assuming that the XKCD numbers are accurate, we can derive the following little chart:
Eating one banana: 0.1 uSv
Average background daily dose: 10 uSv (100 bananas)
Flight from New York to Los Angeles: 40 uSv (400 bananas)
Living in a stone, brick, or concrete building for a year: 70 uSv (700 bananas, 2 per day)
Yearly dose from the body’s natural Potassium: 390 uSv (3,900 bananas, 11 per day)
Mammogram: 3 mSv (30,000 bananas)
Mild radiation poisoning: 400 mSv (4,000,000 bananas)
Severe radiation poisoning: 2 Sv (20,000,000 bananas)
Fatal radiation poisoning: 8 Sv (80,000,000 bananas)
Two sites 50 km from the Fukushima reactors registered daily doses of
about 3.6 mSv (36,000 bananas), although other sites closer to the
reactors were only barely above normal.
TEN MINUTES next to the reactor core at Chernobyl after the explosion
and meltdown were 50 Sv (500,000,000 bananas).
Ahh, perspective.
Mass hysteria is fanned by the media whenever nuclear power is the topic. But it is not unique.
Around thirty years ago the Greater Vancouver Regional District conducted an aerial spraying program for Gypsy Moths. The spray was a biological agent, a bacteria rather than a chemical. The hysteria was getting pretty serious when they flew the first drop. After that they stopped for a few days while the media reported mass visits to the ER and interviewed many people complaining of breathing and other problems resulting from the spraying. The GVRD then informed the media that the first drop was straight water, a placebo to bring out the wackos. It worked and the silence that ensued was wonderful. The actual spraying went quite well after that.
In regards to Allan’s comment at 7:19 pm on March 20, I haul bulk propane and was talking with an American up picking up a load for delivery into the States yesterday. When going across the line into the States now, a load has to be faxed to the border a period of time before it arrives. I believe it’s 3 hours minimum.
When he shows up at the border with his load of Propane; it sets off the radiation sensors at the station. It isn’t a problem for him, as they know he has propane, and that it’s radioactive. Does cause him a problem when he pulls down a load of Butane, which is not radioactive; and it sets off the sensors because of residual propane vapor in the trailer.
Needless to say; on a slow news day, if the MSM became aware that propane was radioactive enough to set off the sensors at the border; they’d have joe average american in a frenzy! They’d freeze this winter!
Robert: a few comments on an otherwise good post.
1. Russia operates just over a dozen RBMK reactors, all now within Russia after the closure of the two at Ignalina in Lithuania.
2. China operates none of these. All Chinese reactors are PWRs with full containment, and also two CANDUs. The first Chinese indigenous reactor was Qinshan 1, a PWR, and its first imported reactor was the two PWRs at Daya Bay, supplied by Areva.
Most here have heard of Carbon-14 dating….
developed by Willard Libby, in the late 40’s.
This works because Carbon 14(an isotope)is cpntinuously created in the atmosphere, 24/7,by the interaction of cosmic rays and nitrogen atoms.
Tiny amounts of carbon-14 are falling on our heads this very second.
These isotopes get absorbed into the bodies of all living plants and animals….as long as they live. Then the carbon-14 decays back to nitrogen….that rate of decay can be measured and a date established.
That same process but with oxygen or nitrogen.oxygen also produces beryllium-10, helium-3, tritium (radiogenic hydrogen), potassium-40, even iridium….about 40,000 tons per year.
Now that is a whack of natural background radiation.
Dr. Takashi Nagai, author of “The Bells of Nagasaki” and doctor, was diagnosed with leukemia before the atomic bomb was dropped in Nagasaki. This was due to his working with x-ray film (he was a radiologist). The bomb itself not only caused immense destruction and burns but caused what we know now is radiation sickness. Other diseases and conditions popped up years after. This was due to proximity of the bomb.
The deaths of those at Chernobyl was due chiefly to poor safety standards, particularly no or little safety equipment after the disaster. There has been an increase in a few forms of cancer but nothing as was initially predicted.
It is naive to both over-estimate and under-estimate the effects of radiation.
Just my thoughts.
http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Takashi_Nagai
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiation_Effects_Research_Foundation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster#Assessing_the_disaster.27s_effects_on_human_health
More will be poisoned here by iodide than any radiation, due to hysteria
The media thrives on sensationalism and loves to create mass hysteria about their favourite topics.
The current talking point is elevated levels in the food sources but the actual levels are unclear. In Saskatchewan when we burn off the carbon from the coal the resulting ash has elevated levels of radiation, higher than most ore samples from the uranium mines. Illuminous dial wrist watches emmited elevated levels of radiation, in fact it was necessary to remove the watch in order to measure radiation from CRT TV’s in the 60’s. In the 70’s I built radiation measuring devices for the UofR, in the 80’s and 90’s I serviced nuclear gages as well as worked in the uranium mines, which required a radiation badge. In 14 years I only had one reported reading, which was when I left my badge on the dash of my car for 14 days, rather then subjecting it to the airport check on a trip to Toronto.
Another interesting point is that I am schedulded for two mediacal tests this month, the first being a CT scan and the second being a full body bone scan which includes an intervenious injection of a radioactive substance and I wholly expect to live through these procedures. In fact I have lived through them in the past.
I am amazed that the reactors in Japan remain as intact as they are when you look at the devistation that nature has created. I would have liked to see what would relain of wind turbines in this devistation.
In 1957, with atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs still in full swing, I worked in southeastern Saskatchewan for a well logging company. One of our downhole products was a “gamma log”. There were days when we couldn’t run one because there was so much radioactivity in the air that we couldn’t calibrate our instruments on surface.
Imagine how much radioactivity would hit the fan in today’s environment of hysteria if the mess at Fukashima was injecting that kind of pollution into the world’s atmosphere!
Regarding the traces of cesium iodide in food: That’s not the kind of seasoning I’d recommend BUT, we only know about it because modern laboratory techniques are super-sensitive. During the period of atmospheric testing, assorted nasties were found in food even though detection thresholds were many times higher than today. If anyone died of lettuce poisoning, I’m not aware of it.
OT
I look forward to the not-Presentident who criticized a US President for overthrowing a dictator to set plans for Saudi Arabia, Bahrein, Yemen, Syria and, althoguh not Arab but muslim, Iran.
Fianlly!
WUWT?
“Fukushima
By Dr Peter Heller,”.
“There’s no place on earth I would rather be right now than at Fukushima – right in the atomic power plant, at the centre of the event. I say this because I am a physicist and there is no other place that could be more exciting and interesting for a physicist. The same goes for many, if not most physicists and engineers, on the planet.
Already at a young age I knew one day I would study physics.”
[…]
“Mike G. says:
March 20, 2011 at 10:37 am
With 40 years in nuclear, both military and civilian, if such an event were to occur at the nuclear plant near here, the one I retired from, I would be volunteering to go back and help. I’d be willing to do so because I know that any radiation exposure would be within limits that would be unlikely to cause any health problems.
While I’m retired from there, I’m currently back working on contract. Yesterday (Saturday), I went back from a planned 5 week vacation to help review the site’s severe accident management guidelines (SAMG). I’ll be back at it tomorrow.”
…-
“A plea for a return to science on the nuclear power issue”
“I get mail:
German physicist Peter Heller wrote a passionate plea for a return to science on the nuclear power issue, published in German here: http://www.science-skeptical.de/blog/fukushima/004149/
With Dr. Heller’s permission, I’ve translated it in English. But having gone over the content, I think his plea is worthy of a much wider audience – more than what NTZ can offer. So I send this to you with the kind request that you consider publishing it at WUWT.
Best regards,
P Gosselin”
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/03/20/a-plea-for-a-return-to-science-on-the-nuclear-power-issue/#more-36323
John Hinderaker over at Power Line, March 20:
What Really Happened at Fukushima
The most cogent explanation I have seen of the nuclear incident at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant is by Ken Haapala. You can download the whole thing here.* An excerpt:
* http://www.sepp.org/the-week-that-was.cfm
Here’s a small amount of what Power Line quoted (quotation marks at beginning and end):
“. . . Although not confirmed, if the above fairly reflects what took place, then it can be a basis to evaluate some of the more excited claims in the press and by anti-nuclear groups and politicians.
1) The reactors withstood the earthquake significantly above designed strength.
2) Although the primary source of electricity failed, initially the backup systems worked as required.
3) The reactors withstood the tsunami which was above planned height.
4) The tsunami disabled the diesel generated
backup of electricity and the battery backup was either disabled or inadequate.
5) The destruction of the standard communications between the plant operators and corporate and national leaders lead to a slow decision to flood the active reactors with sea water, which destroyed them.
6) The observed ‘explosions’ were chemical, probably burning of free hydrogen.
7) Some meltdown of active reactors probably occurred.
8) Some of the cooling pools overheated, probably exposing the fuel rods and giving off hydrogen and radioactive gases.
9) Thus far, except for the immediate area around the reactors, the radioactivity released has been insignificant.
From this natural disaster, we can learn that properly built nuclear plants can withstand powerful earthquakes and tsunamis. But backup cooling systems and any on-site cooling pools must be protected from any after effects of an earthquake. Cooling pools should be separated from the reactors. Also, solid communications must be available in spite of the scope of the natural disaster.”
Reminds me of my honeymoon trip back in ’86 to Europe; which turned out to be the “Radioactive Love Tour”. 25 years this May!
We had our iodine pills, and stayed away from dairy products, emphasizing beer and wine as it wouldn’t have been contaminated.
Vellcome to East Germany…fortunately most of the wind was blowing from west to east at the time!!
Poor people in Chernobyl didn’t have the same blessings, pretty nasty stuff…
So far no cancer in the family, so I’ll take that we were only minimally exposed.
The radiation exposure on the West Coast of America would be approaching background radiation or next to negligible.
Cheers
Hans-Christian Georg Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
I freely admit to having watched absolutely none of the coverage except for the odd Youtube video here and there.
What are the maximum levels those closest to the reactors are looking to have been exposed to?
I’m not sure if I’ve made this comment before, but I’m a truck driver and one time I picked up what we call a “pet rock”. Basically a big slab of granite or whatever fancy rock that will be made into bricks, countertops, gravestones, etc..
US customs has big yellow scanners that you drive through before going to the booth, they’re for radiation. After going through one and parking, a guy came out with a radiation scanner.
He scanned me and proceeded to scan my entire truck and trailer including the pet rock. After going inside, the unfortunate soul that went through the scanner in the lane beside me at the same time was also in there.
They were asking all sorts of questions, “have you had any medical procedures?”, “have you been in contact with anyone that has?” etc..
I put two and two together, my “pet rock” with extremely low level radiation actually tripped the sensor in the lane next to me.
I am a “NEW”, nuclear energy worker. I have had about 200 mrem of dose in the last 5 years. I work in reactor vaults several times a year when our units are on outage. We have multiple monitors that we have to go through to get to different parts of the plant. I have never set one off. I did however, once set off a monitor going into work because it was pouring rain and I was riding my bike and I had become contaminated with radon.
There is so much misinformation, and lack of knowledge in the general public, in regards to anything scientific, that they gobble anything up as gospel truth, from anyone looking or sounding confident (Suzuki, Gore, Lizard May, etc) It truly is sad.
A lack of high school science education has a large amount to do with it.
There’s people I work who think we’re going to sick here in BC from radiation, because the government refuses to divulge ‘the truth’. So, in conversation, I said to these people,
“we live everyday with background, normal radiation.”
“OH???”
“Yes, perfectly normal. Remember those glow in the dark wrist watches? Radium….radioactive.”
“Huh?”
“Yeah, and you know that trip you took to Mexico? Those flights gave you more radiation than anything that might chance drift over from Japan. The atmosphere is much thinner, allowing more radiation at that altitude.”
“No Way!”
And on the conversation went. Amazing, I swear our generation is functionally illiterate. But, if George Clooney, or Bono says something, it MUST be true…….
Typical MSM “reporting”.
Nuclear Radioactive Cloud Churning It’s Way Across Pacific !!! Will Make Landfall in California Tomorrow !!!!!!!!
Near the bottom of page – However, real scientists say radiation levels will be very low, if detectable at all. A fraction of a tooth xray.
Closing line – However, some hyppies near Haight Ashbury who we’re on CNN know that we all have to kiss our a$$ goodbye.
And now someone has started a Journalist Wall of Shame for reporting on the quake/tsunami/reactor stories.
http://jpquake.wikispaces.com/Journalist+Wall+of+Shame
Quite the list!
Pft. SDA just lost all credibility. Everyone knows that the guy running that xkcd site is a lefty scientician. Next you’ll be linking to his cartoons which claim the earth is round, evolution is real, and global warming is happening!
Life as it is on the Chernobyl Riviera.
http://www.viiphoto.com/detailStory.php?news_id=1225
If we can remember (or look up, if you’re young) the Three Mile Island incident, we can learn a few things about GE designed boiling water reactors (BWRs). First, in the TMI incident, a core meltdown occurred and the containment vessel did its job. It is designed in such a manner as to avoid a criticality incident in the event of cooling loss – which is what happened (but due to operator error). In order to improve on the safety of this design, American BWRs were upgraded to include Emergency Core Sprays, Emergency Recirc cooling (driven by the thermal head across the core, not external power), hydrogen spargers and recombiners, and boron injection systems (when all else fails). Whether these measures were emplaced in the Japanese reactors is unknown, but what we can tell is that containment held, and even if the reactors melted down, they do not go critical – that’s a safety feature of the BWR design that has been proven.
So, how does a Chernobyl happen, then, and can such an event take place at Fukushima? Soviet made reactors such as Chernobyl are graphite-modulated (dawn of the nuclear-age technology) that operate without containment. Russia and China are still operating these 50’s era cores today; given what we know of their safety standards THAT’S what I’m worried about.
In any event, it appears that the Fukishima reactors SCRAMed like they were supposed to, any meltdown was contained, the explosions heard were from free hydrogen, and heroic emergency crews have been able to cool the residual heat from the cores and re-flood the spent fuel storage pools. This last bit of information, the cooling water boiling off the spent fuel pools, is the most important: early GE designs did not contemplate the indefinite storage of spent fuel onsite – it was only to be held until shipping to a reprocessing facility could me managed. Given the reality of anti-nuke activists preventing such reprocessing, later designs put the pool in a hardened building where it could languish until a 9.0 earthquake and tsunami could bring it to our attention. And how.
On a few weekly wrapup programs, the MSM, in summarizing the Fukushima events, decried the fact the spent fuel was still stored at the facility, and that was also the practice in the US, and how dangerous it was to do that…..
How often do you scream at your TV? Finally, one more show, they just about came to the same assertion, when it was mentioned at the very end, that the US had built the Yucca mountain facility for storing spent fuel, but its opening was ‘cancelled by government’. While technically true, its a bastardization of what really went down.
MSM….biased, lazy, or both, does it really matter?
What happened to my Apocalypse? They promised me an Apocalypse and I didn’t get it. I’ll never believe them again. /s
X-ray techs, who work on pipeline or plant construction, handle pellets that are similar to those inside those fuel rods. Probably not as refined, but dangerous, none the less. I heard a story from someone who’d worked on an inspection job, in a big factory in Ontario. They somehow lost one of the pellets, and it was picked up by a janitor before they could find it. Apparently, these rods are a funny shape, and the man thought it looked cool. The man took it home to show his family, then set it on the mantle in their living room. Within a month, he and his wife were dead, and their children were recovering in hospital.
I can’t speak to the accuracy of the story, but it gave me a new respect for those X-ray trucks I’ve been working around for so many years.
Now those where some interesting charts.
JMO
For some time now, ever since I heard about the Biological (or Banana) Equivalent Dose, I have been wanting to put these sorts of numbers into something I can understand more clearly. Assuming that the XKCD numbers are accurate, we can derive the following little chart:
Eating one banana: 0.1 uSv
Average background daily dose: 10 uSv (100 bananas)
Flight from New York to Los Angeles: 40 uSv (400 bananas)
Living in a stone, brick, or concrete building for a year: 70 uSv (700 bananas, 2 per day)
Yearly dose from the body’s natural Potassium: 390 uSv (3,900 bananas, 11 per day)
Mammogram: 3 mSv (30,000 bananas)
Mild radiation poisoning: 400 mSv (4,000,000 bananas)
Severe radiation poisoning: 2 Sv (20,000,000 bananas)
Fatal radiation poisoning: 8 Sv (80,000,000 bananas)
Two sites 50 km from the Fukushima reactors registered daily doses of
about 3.6 mSv (36,000 bananas), although other sites closer to the
reactors were only barely above normal.
TEN MINUTES next to the reactor core at Chernobyl after the explosion
and meltdown were 50 Sv (500,000,000 bananas).
Ahh, perspective.
Mass hysteria is fanned by the media whenever nuclear power is the topic. But it is not unique.
Around thirty years ago the Greater Vancouver Regional District conducted an aerial spraying program for Gypsy Moths. The spray was a biological agent, a bacteria rather than a chemical. The hysteria was getting pretty serious when they flew the first drop. After that they stopped for a few days while the media reported mass visits to the ER and interviewed many people complaining of breathing and other problems resulting from the spraying. The GVRD then informed the media that the first drop was straight water, a placebo to bring out the wackos. It worked and the silence that ensued was wonderful. The actual spraying went quite well after that.
In regards to Allan’s comment at 7:19 pm on March 20, I haul bulk propane and was talking with an American up picking up a load for delivery into the States yesterday. When going across the line into the States now, a load has to be faxed to the border a period of time before it arrives. I believe it’s 3 hours minimum.
When he shows up at the border with his load of Propane; it sets off the radiation sensors at the station. It isn’t a problem for him, as they know he has propane, and that it’s radioactive. Does cause him a problem when he pulls down a load of Butane, which is not radioactive; and it sets off the sensors because of residual propane vapor in the trailer.
Needless to say; on a slow news day, if the MSM became aware that propane was radioactive enough to set off the sensors at the border; they’d have joe average american in a frenzy! They’d freeze this winter!
One good XKCD deserves another:
http://xkcd.com/556/
Robert: a few comments on an otherwise good post.
1. Russia operates just over a dozen RBMK reactors, all now within Russia after the closure of the two at Ignalina in Lithuania.
2. China operates none of these. All Chinese reactors are PWRs with full containment, and also two CANDUs. The first Chinese indigenous reactor was Qinshan 1, a PWR, and its first imported reactor was the two PWRs at Daya Bay, supplied by Areva.
Most here have heard of Carbon-14 dating….
developed by Willard Libby, in the late 40’s.
This works because Carbon 14(an isotope)is cpntinuously created in the atmosphere, 24/7,by the interaction of cosmic rays and nitrogen atoms.
Tiny amounts of carbon-14 are falling on our heads this very second.
These isotopes get absorbed into the bodies of all living plants and animals….as long as they live. Then the carbon-14 decays back to nitrogen….that rate of decay can be measured and a date established.
That same process but with oxygen or nitrogen.oxygen also produces beryllium-10, helium-3, tritium (radiogenic hydrogen), potassium-40, even iridium….about 40,000 tons per year.
Now that is a whack of natural background radiation.