Page 3 - Steam Explosion News Today

Theres some suggestion now, jim, that these reactors in japan, theyre in level six. somewhere between three mile island and chernobyl. is that what youre hearing as well? >> i have heard that. i heard a french engineer offer that had assessment. in some ways you can unction it. in chernobyl you had the outright release of large amounts of radio activity because there was no containment vessel. and you had a steam explosion and a fire that carried that directly into the environment. that has not ...

Headline out of japan is there are no threats or leaks to the nuclear plant. there are no images -- >> the earthquake didnt cause it, the tsunami caused them later. when the tsunami came an hour later, thats when we started getting information. >> even in the wake of the tsunami, they were saying there were no reports of leakage. >> even in the threat of the tsunami for eight hours the backup pumping systems cooling systems ran off batteries and eventually the batteries ran out and the tsunami o...

Liquid and melts and goes down in the reactor. when it hits water we have a steam explosion and in the worst case there will be a rupture of the reactor vessel and release of radioactivity into the environment. depending on which extent the rods are exposed, the size of the explosion and the leaks we can assess the consequences. >> they are watching to see where the winds are in the area so they know if there is any radiation into the atmosphere, where it is going and the like. i want to ask you...

Leakage. the navy has repositioned u.s. ships away from that site after discovering low levels of radiation on 17 helicopter crew members, all have been treated and declared contamination free. were breaking out our coverage into a couple of conversation. more on the search-and-rescue efforts but first i want to focus on another threat which is the nuclear one. joining us now two experts in nuclear matters, david albright, a former nuclear inspector with the institute for science and internation...

The reactor will go down from the fission products and the ability to cool that core will improve with time. >> we were talking offset, you have a concern that were not getting all the information from the tokyo electric power company and the government. you understand you think theyre trying to balance the concern for creating a panic, but at the same time youre concerned were not getting all the information. >> no, thats right. we should be hearing reports on what are the radiation levels. >> ...

>> and the containment if the worst case scenario occurred in the plant and there was what we called a melt down, what is the effect? is the effect like an explosion? like a nuclear bomb going off or simply what gets released into the air around that area? >> no, it wouldnt be as dramatic. the scenario is this. the fuel in a normal nuclear reactor is in solid form in the form of rods. if that fuel overheats and melts, it essentially becomes like a lava, which would then flow down into the floor ...

Plant that made pest i sides. contamination would last nor a considerable amount of time. you would get nothing more than steam explosion, fire. theres no nuclear explosion to any of this. >> so theres nothing that i could do to a nuclear reactor to create the parallel event or energy release of an atoum bomb, crest? >> no, none at all. >> representative price, what is the political reception in georgia to the possibility of these nuclear plants being built in georgia in the context of some of t...