Nuclear Boy
I am not sure I understand why, but this made me smile. Maybe it was the earnestness. But, amidst the worst nuclear catastrophe in decades, a smile is definitely worth something.
2011
220 posts
Another FEPC Statement
FEPC has released another statement. Other regular sources of information are the IAEA and the Japan Atomic Industrial Form. This time there is no entry for Unit 4, which is the main source of debate between TEPCO and NRC Chairman…
Most Recent FEPC Statement
FEPC has released another update. Not great news. The cores are all at least partially exposed. The water temperature in the spent fuel pond is 183 degrees Fahrenheit — close to boiling. The fact sheet contains a small amount of…
Cascading Failures
No one knows where Japan’s ongoing nuclear disaster will end. The current signs are ominous. We can only hope that the spent-fuel ponds can be prevented from boiling off. In the meantime, we can try to draw out some of…
Zirconium Cladding Fire Resources
A bibliography regarding zirconium cladding fires or, a discourse on the folly of man in the face of the wrath of nature. After the jump.
New FEPC Statement
Update | 4:32 pm It looks like there is some confusion about the source of the fire, which the IAEA reported was “at the spent fuel storage pond.” Keith Bradsher and Hiroko Tabuchi in the New York Times quote an…
The Age of Extremes
Over the eons, Planet Earth has been profoundly marked by violent collisions, including perhaps five that prompted great extinctions. The playground now known as the Chesapeake Bay was created thirty-five million years ago by an asteroid three to five kilometers…
Another FEPC Statement
Another statement from FEPC. My comment: TEPCO is fighting the good fight, continuing to inject seawater into Units 1 and 2. TEPCO has suspended seawater injection on Unit 3 after the explosion. That looks very bad. Remember, the goal now…
IAEA on Fukushima
Credit: Digital Globe Below is the full text of an IAEA update on Fukushima. Please note that the situation is, unfortunately, worsening by the minute. TEPCO is fighting heroically to stabilize the reactors, but they seem to be losing. I…
FEPC Statement on Fukushima
Am pleased to be back in the US, safe and sound with my family. (Note to reporters: Stop sounding disappointed; it pisses me off.) The Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan (FEPC) — which arranged for my trip —…