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A horrific grid. it compares the various nuclear meltdown scenarios. we had chernobyl. that was the worst. here's chernobyl, has the highest rating of seven. levels below that are at five, three mile island. the japanese officials are saying now the situation at fukushima right now, the one we're looking at is still a four. give us a sense of what that means. seven being chernobyl. five being three mile island. and the difference not in the meltdown degree but the level of successful containment, put those two figures together, meltdown, degree and containment. >> absolutely. so this is not go...

Fukushima experienced core damage. the uranium lost cool overheated and interacting now with the fuel clanning which has melted inside of the reactor and as a result that has generated a lot of the hydrogen gas and oxygen, two explosive elements. apparently the hydrogen and oxygen gas leaked out of the reactor vessel along with radio activity and filled the cavity and there are many ignition sources inside of the reactor building . it ignited . detonated with an explosion that blew a wall out of the reactor building. we are now concerned about the containment structure itself that houses all o...

Plant, you could be talking about something that could affect the entire world? could affect the world? >> the winds blow west to east. and that means that any of the radioactive material that enters the atmosphere would be blown onto the west coast of the united states and beyond. so, yes, a serious meltdown here, would affect populations in the united states and potentially it around the globe. we have to hope that they can contain it. that it doesn't get to that point. if you can concane it now, you valid a very serious radioactive event, but it would be contained locally. you want to keep ...

Is been hydrogen in the reactor core. we understand, as well, hour, you do have a robust containment structure surrounding that and that would be a couple feet of concrete and steel reinforced rebar in that so that structure is still intact as we understand. so the defense at that facility is doing what it needs to do which is to assure even in a serious situation potentially you could say worst case scenario that public health and safety is still being maintained. >> here is what we understand from reuters, government officials are distributing iodine to the people arod the facility, the nucl...

Boiling water reactors where the core melts and will drop through the containment vessel. then you want to make sure that the concrete which is feet thick can contain that molten core. if that fails, then that is really the worst case scenario that the entire containment structure collapses, then we have massive releases of highly radioactive material. >> and that material that would be released in a case like that would be released in a gassy us form? a radioactive cloud that could move? >> once it is hot, it hits other structures, you get fire, smoke, particulat particulates, then ground con...