Reactor meltdown possible in Japan.

[daddylonglegs]

So we still don't know what kind of damage #2 has but we do know the rods themselves are not on fire in #4,,, yet radiation has spiked by a large amount

[Bear00001]

For the reading to spike from 8.247 milli to 300 milli, is suspect there was a breach/fissure/crack in the Reactor vessel #2. Once the pressure escaped, the crack closed again, but probably not fully so radioactive steam will escape and readings will be higher going forward. A bigger failure of the Reactor Vessel is more likely as the rods are exposed and continue to heat up.

Hopefully GE has some spare cooling pumps that can be brought in pronto and set up to keep the cooling process going in all the reactors.

[Scott747]

And there she goes, Nikkei PLUMMETING.

Lunch break. Futures trading and circuit breakers should be tripping soon.

[JoMo]

Radiation level going up because of the fire Edano said, but no nuclear material on fire?

Something seems weird.

400 millisevert @ 3

100 milliservert @ 4

[Bodhi Cove]

3 Different Nuclear Plants

(CNN) -- Here is a quick look at Japan's nuclear industry and the problems faced at three plants since Friday's massive earthquake off northern Honshu, as compiled by the CNN Wire:

FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI

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The plant with the worst reported problems is Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi, about 65 kilometers (40 miles) south of Sendai. Three of the plant's six reactors had already been shut down for inspection at the time of the quake, but the other three are now having cooling problems.

.

An explosion early Tuesday is believed to have damaged the No. 2 reactor's suppression pool, a donut-shaped reservoir at the base of the reactor containment vessel. All but about 50 workers were evacuated following the blast due to elevated radiation levels, TEPCO reported.

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Reactor No. 2 lost its cooling capabilities Monday after a hydrogen blast at reactor No. 3 that blew away the roof and walls of the No. 3 reactor building. Workers began to pump seawater into unit 2, as they have been doing with reactors 1 and 3 -- but "It cannot necessarily be called a stable situation," Yukio Edano, Japan's chief Cabinet secretary, said Tuesday.

.

Edano said he could not rule out the possibility of a meltdown at all three troubled reactors at the plant.

.

Monday's explosion injured 11 people. A similar blast Saturday blew the roof off the No. 1 reactor's containment structure and injured four workers, but the reactor was not reported to have sustained damage.

.

Workers have been pouring a mixture of seawater and boron into the reactors in what experts have called a last-ditch attempt to prevent a meltdown -- a catastrophic failure of the reactor core, with a potential for widespread radiation release.

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Japanese nuclear regulators have said there is a "possibility" that at least a partial meltdown already has occurred in the reactors. The government has evacuated more than 200,000 residents from homes within a 20-kilometer (12.4-mile) radius of the plant and tested 160 people for radiation exposure, authorities said Sunday.

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The six units at Fukushima Daiichi went into service between 1970 and 1979.

.

NATIONWIDE

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Japan's electric power companies run 54 nuclear reactors, with two under construction, at 17 power plants, according to figures from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog. They produced more than 280,000 gigawatt-hours of electricity in 2010 -- about 30 percent of Japan's total electricity generation.

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Most Japanese plants -- including the three facing emergencies since the earthquake -- use boiling-water reactors, in which water circulated through the reactor is converted to steam and used to drive a generator.

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Most U.S. reactors and about 40 percent of Japan's are pressurized-water reactors, in which reactor coolant is kept separate from the steam used to drive generators.

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Both types are far different from the Soviet design involved in the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, a reactor model now considered unsafe by the international nuclear industry. In addition, the Chernobyl plant lacked the kind of reinforced steel-and-concrete containment structure that U.S. and Japanese regulators require.

.

Tokyo Electric Power Company is the largest of the nine utilities that operate Japan's nuclear plants and runs the two plants affected by Friday's quake. In 2002, its president, vice president and chairman resigned after a scandal in which TEPCO was accused of falsifying safety repair records in 29 cases. The company instituted reforms in September 2002 in an attempt to restore public confidence.

.

FUKUSHIMA DAINI

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Japanese authorities have detected cooling-system problems at TEPCO's Fukushima Daini plant, but have not expressed any concerns about possible meltdowns there. Nevertheless, those living within a 10-kilometer radius of Fukushima Daini were ordered to evacuate as a precaution.

.

TEPCO reported that cooling systems for the three operational units at Fukushima Daini failed after the quake, but the IAEA, citing Japanese authorities, reported that all three had power Sunday afternoon.

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TEPCO reported one fatality at the plant. A crane operator who had been trapped at an operating console in the plant's exhaust stack was pronounced dead Saturday, the company reported.

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Fukushima Daini is about 80 kilometers south of Sendai. The plant's four reactors went online between 1981 and 1987.

.

<a name="rv1">ONAGAWA

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Japanese officials declared an emergency Sunday at the Onagawa nuclear plant after finding radiation above allowed levels in the surrounding area. However, radiation levels had dropped to normal by early Monday, and the "current assumption" of Japanese authorities is that the increased radiation levels may have been caused by material released from Fukushima Daiichi, according to the IAEA.

[daddylonglegs]

So the blowing of #2 (the building) probably caused fire at #4>? maybe not?

[pazzo83]

Lunch break. Futures trading and circuit breakers should be tripping soon.

Yea i noticed it hadn't updated since 11 local time

[lester]

Japan faced the likelihood of a catastrophic nuclear accident Tuesday morning, as an explosion at the most crippled of three reactors at the Fukushima Daichi Nuclear Power Station damaged its crucial steel containment structure, emergency workers were withdrawn from the plant, and much larger emissions of radioactive materials appeared immiment, according to official statements and industry executives informed about the developments

New York Times

[Scott747]

So the blowing of #2 (the building) probably caused fire at #4>? maybe not?

No. It was the blast at #3.

[Bear00001]

So the blowing of #2 (the building) probably caused fire at #4>? maybe not?

Probably not. More because of widespread failures across the facilities.

[daddylonglegs]

Why would they not start dropping cement and sand on that #2? If its cracked, isn't it toast?

[pazzo83]

Lunch break. Futures trading and circuit breakers should be tripping soon.

jesus dude, nikkei futures down -770 to 8690. Good night folks.

[Bear00001]

Japan faced the likelihood of a catastrophic nuclear accident Tuesday morning, as an explosion at the most crippled of three reactors at the Fukushima Daichi Nuclear Power Station damaged its crucial steel containment structure, emergency workers were withdrawn from the plant, and much larger emissions of radioactive materials appeared immiment, according to official statements and industry executives informed about the developments

New York Times

Hence my comment about a crack/fissure. Expect it to get worse over time unless they can stabilize the core by continuing to cool it.

[SuperNET]

Terrible outcome with some misunderstood or misleading language throughout the day. This was bad from the word go. Good grief at the folks....trying there level best to overcome something they did not ask for.

Ironic that we had the worst oil spill and 'the soon to be' worst nuclear disaster in less than a year.

This will rock the world's markets....not good.

[OSUmetstud]

400 mSV is pretty serious stuff. Are the workers putting on suits?

[janetjanet998]

now saying the smoke has high levels of radiation and will spread over a wide area

[k***]

jesus dude, nikkei futures down -770 to 8690. Good night folks.

looks like kudlow spoke too soon when he declared the human toll worse than the economic toll

[pazzo83]

looks like kudlow spoke too soon when he declared the human toll worse than the economic toll

lmao, that was such a boneheaded remark.

[Dunkman]

Kyodo obvioulsy

BREAKING NEWS: Radiation 400 times annual legal limit measured near No. 3 reactor (11:37)

It's like nothing is working right now.

[Bear00001]

Why would they not start dropping cement and sand on that #2? If its cracked, isn't it toast?

I suspect they will only resort to this when the failure of the reactor vessel is complete versus a crack/fissure. Until then, there is always hope that they will pump enough water in there to keep it cool.

By the way, they need sand and Boron to stop the reaction. Then they need to create a containment on top of the containment (assuming the latter is not breached).

[samdman95]

now saying the smoke has high levels of radiation and will spread over a wide area

Wow. The French were right in telling people to leave Tokyo.

[Indystorm]

According to Reuters, the French embassy is saying in Tokyo that weak radioactive contamination could reach Tokyo in about ten hours.

[Wonderdog]

looks like kudlow spoke too soon when he declared the human toll worse than the economic toll

Nothing new for Kudlow.

[Clinch Leatherwood]

Nik futures down 11% heading into the 2nd half. Wow. Tells you what the smart money took from the news conference.

Hang sent down 3.5

As the guy on cnbc Asia is saying this is a big big disaster. He's making the point that we don't understand how bad It is yet.

Also ranting that there's a 40 billion dollar bet on oil going higher which is hurting the economy....that the bet is smaller than what madoff stole and that this might be a time to get speculators out. Odd rant as he admits he's a speculator....anyway.

[eyewall]

I know I would get the hell out of there even well outside the evac zone.

"Everybody knows the boat is leaking, everybody knows the captain lied".

[Scott747]

jesus dude, nikkei futures down -770 to 8690. Good night folks.

Toshiba and TEPCO hit limit down going into the lunch break. Thought about getting some and decided against it.

BOJ will probably intervene again. Have done a good job with the yen.

No doubt that they are on the line with Ben.

[ineedsnow]

looks like the dow is in for a hurting tomorrow at the opening bell also was only at -51 an hour ago

http://www.cnbc.com/id/17689937/site/14081545/

[daddylonglegs]

winds are from the NNE in Tokyo , but very light

[Clinch Leatherwood]

Radiation 9x normal level at Kanagawa near tokyo

[OSUmetstud]

Radiation 9x normal level at Kanagawa near tokyo

link?