Watch New Explosion Destroys Second Fukushima Nuclear Reactor - Full Videos

None of this is to say that what has happened in Japan is any less of a tragedy, it is just that phrases like nuclear meltdown and nuclear explosion used in this context in no way help, they spread fear, give tabloid headline writers scaremongering fodder, and are being hijacked repeatedly for personal agendas.



Conventional explosions do occur, as we’ve learned this week from tragic events in Japan. But, these are not nuclear explosions. There is a risk of particles of radioactive material entering the atmosphere or the ocean, but this does not amount to the impact of an actual nuclear explosion.


Essentially, the fuel concentration in a power plant is far too low to build the high-energy neutron stream needed to cause an explosive chain reaction. As to nucleear meltdown. The term nuclear meltdown is laden with China Syndrome style drama, but it does not lead to a nuclear explosion; a lot of heat is produced, and the nuclear fuel melts (happens at about 2700 Celsius).None of this is to say that what has happened in Japan is any less of a tragedy, it is just that phrases like nuclear meltdown and nuclear explosion used in this context in no way help, they spread fear, give tabloid headline writers scaremongering fodder, and are being hijacked repeatedly for personal agendas.Conventional explosions do occur, as we’ve learned this week from tragic events in Japan.



But, these are not nuclear explosions. There is a risk of particles of radioactive material entering the atmosphere or the ocean, but this does not amount to the impact of an actual nuclear explosion.

Second Explosion At Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant :

Japanese officials were trying frantically to thwart partial meltdowns presumed under way Sunday at two earthquake-stricken nuclear reactors in Japan.

Fuel rods were briefly exposed and radiation levels briefly rose above the legal limit at the second reactor Sunday, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano.

A partial meltdown in the unit is "highly possible," he told reporters. "Because it's inside the reactor, we cannot directly check it but we are taking measures on the assumption of the possible partial meltdown."







Four nuclear plants in northeastern Japan have reported damage, but the danger Monday appeared to be greatest at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex, where one explosion occurred Saturday and a second was feared. Operators have lost the ability to cool three reactors at Dai-ichi and three more at another nearby complex using usual procedures, after the quake knocked out power and the tsunami swamped backup generators.

At 11:01 a.m. Monday, Japan time, another building at the Fukushima nuclear power plant housing the No. 3 exploded. According to Tokyo Electric, some workers were injured, with a number of reports putting the number of casualties at 11.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the possibility of a significant radiation leak after the second blast is small. The building surrounding the vessel containing the No. 1 reactor exploded on March 12.

In a video of the No. 3 explosion, the blast appears much bigger than the No. 1 blast, featuring a bright flash followed by a towering column of smoke and concrete that then tumbles in chunks out of the sky.