03-13-2011, 06:15 PM
Also, no one seems to be talking about the "drywell" containment located BELOW the reactor vessel, filled with neutron absorbing, reaction killing, chemicals (halfnium and boron, I think... but I admit my nuclear physics is barely above layman level, and more than a little rusty).
No one has mentioned the difference between "some of the fuel rods have started to melt" and "there is molten puddle of nuclear fuel in the bottom of the reactor vessel".
No one seems to differentiate between a slow 'leak' in the bottom of the reactor vessel vs the idiot-management induced massive steam explosion in Chernobyl. EVEN IF a "worst case" happens in Fukushima, and the nuclear fuel melts ENTIRELY (something that NO ONE has said is happening), and plops through the bottom of the reactor vessel into the drywell containment underneath... it will not be causing the kind of steam explosion and ignited radioactive graphite shielding "rain" around the reactor that happened at Chernobyl.
So far the ONLY "experts" the "news" (and I use both terms lightly) seems to have interviewed are ANTI-nuclear activists, or someone hawking a book.
A decent NEWS program would put together a round table discussion of a physicist to explain the science, a nuclear engineer to explain the mechanics, and a nuclear accident specialist to explain the effects.
Maybe add a Japanese nuclear industry spokesman to round it out.
No one has mentioned the difference between "some of the fuel rods have started to melt" and "there is molten puddle of nuclear fuel in the bottom of the reactor vessel".
No one seems to differentiate between a slow 'leak' in the bottom of the reactor vessel vs the idiot-management induced massive steam explosion in Chernobyl. EVEN IF a "worst case" happens in Fukushima, and the nuclear fuel melts ENTIRELY (something that NO ONE has said is happening), and plops through the bottom of the reactor vessel into the drywell containment underneath... it will not be causing the kind of steam explosion and ignited radioactive graphite shielding "rain" around the reactor that happened at Chernobyl.
So far the ONLY "experts" the "news" (and I use both terms lightly) seems to have interviewed are ANTI-nuclear activists, or someone hawking a book.
A decent NEWS program would put together a round table discussion of a physicist to explain the science, a nuclear engineer to explain the mechanics, and a nuclear accident specialist to explain the effects.
Maybe add a Japanese nuclear industry spokesman to round it out.