Japan Earthquake & Pacific Tsunami - Disasters - Natural and Man-Made

News From the Web

Nuclear Power Plants

Without electrical power, the cooling units in Japan's nuclear power plants will not work. Without the cooling units, the reactors will become overheated, which could result in a nuclear meltdown that would release radioactive materials into the environment. More information on this topic can be found in the links below.

Asian Nuclear Safety Network
ANSN latest news from Asia
CNN: Q & A What has the quake done to the nuclear reactors?
Several experts answer questions about Japan's situation.
March 12, 2011
Emergencies at 5 Japanese Nuclear Reactors; Radiation Levels Spike at Most-Affected Site
ABC News
March 11, 2011
Environmental News Service
No Meltdown After Explosion at Japanese Nuclear Reactor
March 12, 2011
How Japan's Nuclear Crisis Unfolded
CNN
March 16, 2011
International Atomic Energy Agency
IAEA update on Japan Earthquake
Japan's Nuclear Concerns Explained
CNN
Monitoring the Monitors: Who's Still Tracking Radiation from Fukushima? And who should we trust? by Daniel Krieger
From Slate, June 16, 2011
New York Times
News about nuclear energy, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.
Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency
Seismic Damage Information
Nuclear Energy Institute
World Nuclear Association
Nuclear Power Plants and Earthquakes

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Japan Earthquake, Pacific Tsunami and Nuclear Disaster

An 8.9 magnitude earthquake, one of the largest ever recorded, occured off the eastern coast of Japan on Friday, March 11, 2011. The quake altered the coastline of Japan by 8 feet and shifted the earth's axis. The tremors caused widespread damage, and were quickly followed by a massive tsunami that swept away everything in its path.

AP Photo/Kyodo News)

AP Photo: Tsunami tidal wave in northern Japan

Waves from the tsunami hit the islands of Hawaii, the coast of California, and Russia.

NOAA Pacific Tsunami Warning Center Image of maximum tsunami wave amplitude after the Japan earthquake of March 11, 2011

The earthquake, tsunami and resulting loss of electrical power have created emergency situations at Japan's nuclear power plants, where hydrogen explosions and rising radiation levels have raised fears of a major nuclear accident.

Getty images: Video from Japan's NHK Monday March 14th shows the moment of a hydrogen explosion at the Fukushima nuclear power station's number three reactor.

On April 2nd, workers discovered an 8-inch crack in a concrete channel at reactor No. 2 where radioactive water had been accumulating after it had been sprayed onto the reactor to cool it. Contaminated water is leaking into the ocean, causing high levels of radioactivity in the ocean water around the plant.

A worker wearing a protective suit points at a cracked concrete pit near the number two reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Photograph: Reuters

By April 19, 2011, the death toll has climbed to nearly 14,000, with an additional 14,000 missing and 136,000 displaced. Radiation levels around the Fukushima nuclear plant are higher than normal, forcing evacuation of residents in a 20-km (12.5-mile) radius around the plant.