"Right at this moment, we are still trying to control this accident, and the nuclear reactors are not stable yet. We are dealing with all our might and resources and try to minimize the impact of the radiation to the people around this nuclear plant." A day ago, Japan ordered new evacuations for towns around the plant, including some outside the 20- and 30-km danger zones drawn in the early days of the accident.
"What's different here from the Chernobyl accident is that we have not yet seen a direct impact on the health of the people as a result of the nuclear accident. The accident itself is big, but we will make, as our first priority, our utmost effort to avoid any health impact on the people." Scientists believe the amount of radiation released is only a tenth of what was released at Chernobyl. But the levels for radioactive iodine and cesium that have been spewed into the air, water and soil around the plant are in the tens of trillions of bequerels - 15 TIMES HIGHER THAN THE THRESHOLD FOR A TOP-SCALE EVENT. A final level won't be set until the disaster is over and a more detailed investigation has been conducted.
Japan ordered people living within 20 km of the plant to evacuate after the accident began March 11. A few days later, it told people living another 10 km out to stay inside their homes. Monday, it warned that many of those remaining inside the 20-30 km belt would need to leave - and so would residents of several other towns outside the existing danger zone. "This policy does not require immediate evacuation right away, but we take the long-term perspective, considering the long-term effect of radiation on your health." Evacuation orders have so far covered about 85,000 people inside the 20-kilometer (12.4-mile) zone, while another 62,000 within 30 kilometers have been told to stay inside. Japan's government said it had no estimate of the number of people who would be covered by the new directives. The move was triggered by the discovery of low levels of radiation that could give residents a dose of more than 20 millisieverts per year - a tiny fraction of what would cause immediate radiation sickness, but more than seven times the amount a typical resident of a western industrialized country receives from background sources in a year. Long-term exposures to those levels of radiation could increase the risk of cancer, and the presence of cesium isotopes that have half-lives of up to 30 years means that radioactivity could linger for some time.
The Japanese should "BE READY FOR THE POSSIBILITY THAT THINGS MAY TURN FOR THE WORSE." Two fresh earthquakes rattled the country Monday, forcing workers to evacuate the plant and knocking out power to the three damaged reactors for about 40 minutes. The magnitude 6.6 tremor came a month to the day after the magnitude 9 quake and tsunami that knocked out the plant's cooling systems, and followed a magnitude 7.1 aftershock Thursday night. But neither the 6.6 quake nor any of the smaller ones that rippled across the region Monday night and Tuesday inflicted any more damage to the plant.
Tuesday morning, a fire broke out in a battery storage building in a water discharge area of reactors 1-4 at Fukushima Daiichi. The fire was out a few hours later and the company said it caused no radiation emissions and no effect on cooling systems. The cause was not immediately known.
LARGEST QUAKES -
This morning -
6.2 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
Yesterday -
4/11/11 -
5.4 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
6.4 NEAR EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
5.0 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
5.5 OFF EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
5.0 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
5.7 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
5.1 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
5.0 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
5.3 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
6.7 EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN
5.0 NEAR EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
5.2 FIJI REGION
JAPAN - A strong offshore earthquake of magnitude 6.4 hit at 8.08am local time off the coast of Chiba prefecture, just east of Tokyo. There was no chance of a tsunami. Shinkansen bullet train services stopped operations to the northern region, hit badly by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that killed 13,130 and left 13,718 missing. There were no immediate reports of fresh damage. Meanwhile at the troubled Fukushima nuclear power plant where workers are battling to contain a nuclear crisis, a fire broke out at reactor No.4. It was not clear whether the blaze was linked to the latest quake.
VOLCANOES -
PHILIPPINES - Continued unrest at Taal as evacuations begin. The news of a potential eruption at Taal continues - and the latest has PHIVOLCS pondering raising the Alert Status from 2 to 3 if the seismicity at the caldera continues to increase. In their latest statement about the volcano, PHILVOLCS is pretty clear about why they are so concerned: "The remarkable increase in C02 concentration indicates anomalous gas release from the magma at depth." Additionally, in Sunday's update, PHIVOLCS reported, "The water level further receded from 0.36 m to 0.33 m. Water temperature slightly increased from 30.0°C to 30.5°C." It suggests that the system is inflating (to explain the water level) and magma is rising closer to the surface (heating the water).
The next step of changing the Alert Status is a big deal. Alert status 3 means an eruption will come in weeks to months, so PHIVOLCS will likely only go to 3 if the caldera continues to ramp its activity. The Philippine government has now banned fishing with Taal Lake, the tourist ban is still in place and 77 people were evacuated from Volcano Island. However, many families living near Taal are choosing to remain at home while the evacuation order for people around the lake remains voluntary.
TROPICAL STORMS -
No current tropical storms.
SEVERE RAIN STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES -
AUSTRALIA - Victoria has topped its average April rainfall over the past 4 days. Melbourne's CBD and its eastern suburbs were drenched in heavy rain overnight, with flood warnings issued for Gippsland. Melbourne's CBD received 44.4 millimetres while 61mm fell in north-eastern suburban Doncaster. Gippsland's Latrobe Valley recorded 70mm, with 65mm in nearby Moe. "The (April) average is around 50mm; if you add the rain we had on Saturday night and a bit on Sunday it would be above that average."
SPACE WEATHER -
HORSESHOE ASTEROID DISCOVERED - Astronomers have found that recently-discovered asteroid 2010 SO16 has been following Earth around the Sun for more than 250,000 years. Relative to our planet, the asteroid describes a horseshoe-shaped path in space. Asteroid 2010 SO16 and the Earth follow similar orbits around the Sun. But as seen from Earth, 2010 SO16 gradually traces out a horseshoe shape in space, taking 175 years to go from one end of the horseshoe to the other. Currently, three other horseshoe companions of the Earth are known to exist but, unlike 2010 SO16, these linger for a few thousand years at most before moving on to different orbits. (diagram)
