UPDATE 2-Water leaks at Japan's Onagawa nuclear plant

[jakeXT]

Source: Reuters

* Aftershock splashes water from fuel pools at 3 reactors
* Small rise in radiation levels inside reactor buildings
* Power lines hit but backup generator available (Adds post-March 11 water leakage in paragraph 3)

TOKYO, April 8 (Reuters) - Water leaked out of spent fuel pools at the Onagawa nuclear plant in northeast Japan after a strong aftershock rocked the region late on Thursday, but there was no change in the radiation levels outside the plant, operator Tohoku Electric Power Co said on Friday.

It said water sloshed out of spent fuel pools in the plant's No.1, No.2 and No.3 reactors, which had been shut down after the 9.0 magnitude quake on March 11, and had also leaked in three other locations in the No.3 reactor complex.

The Onagawa plant, in Miyagi prefecture, was automatically shut and later cooled down safely after it was hit by a tsunami 13 metres (43 ft) higher than its base level triggered by the March 11 quake.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/08/japan-leak-idUSL3E7F80BF20110408

[jtuck004]

1. Let's hope it stops there. And when are the earthquakes going to settle down?. eom

[stockholmer]

9. the next 2 years will be hellish for major earthquakes

Piers Corbyn (UK astrophysicist and meteorologist) has been extremely accurate


http://www.weatheraction.com/displayarticle.asp?a=314&c=5

Delta House, 175-177 Borough High Street. London SE1 1HR [phone] From Piers Corbyn [phone] [e-mail] www.weatheraction.com

Twitter address Piers_Corbyn - http://twitter.com/Piers_Corbyn



21-2-11

As New Zealand is struck by Earthquake Piers says:-

Expect more earthquakes world-wide for next two years

• More Earthquakes near solar activity minima

• Odd-Even cycle minima (like THIS one) probably worse

• More Earthquakes associated with Solar proton events



Christchurch, South Island New Zealand was struck by a damaging shallow level Earthquake on 21 Feb and is suffering severe aftershocks. See video & news - http://bit.ly/gKwPmR

This event follows the world wide increase in volcanism and earthquakes in the last year or two and confirms the general statistical fact that more - and more serious - earthquakes, and volcanic activity, tend to occur around solar cycle minima - see, eg, article by Gui Qing ZHANG

http://www.springerlink.com/content/buvw2tq081013210/fulltext.pdf?page=1

The article by Zhang also associates increased Earthquakes with general increases in solar proton events. Piers Corbyn, astrophysicist of WeatherAction.com comments:




"Major storms are also associated with solar proton events and significantly we had important solar proton events on 28 Jan just before our predicted world double whammy of the simultaneous mega blizzard USA and mega Tropical Cyclone Yasi hitting Queensland - http://bit.ly/gvbPi5

"There was also a surge of solar protons associated with the major X2 flare of 15 Feb which preceded another pair of simultaneous USA blizzards and East of Queensland Tropical Cyclone formation (TC Atu) 18/19 Feb both of which we predicted weeks ahead - http://bit.ly/dTAtu8

"We now think that it is not just general solar proton event levels which point towards more earthquakes but that individual solar proton events exacerbate immediate earthquake (and associated volcanism) risk either directly or due to consequent storm activity and related surface pressure changes such as caused by our solar triggered and predicted Tropical Cyclone Atu which is currently centred North of New Zealand and heading closer. See:-

http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/tracking/sp201117_5day.html#a_topad

There are also additional lunar effects on storm development and earthquakes & volcanism and for solar drivers it appears that the odd-even minima, particularly the later part ie the rising phase of even solar cycles - WHICH IS WHERE WE ARE NOW (early Solar Cycle 24) - are the most dangerous.




"We mentioned these facts when we successfully made a one-off prediction of re-exacerbation of the Iceland Earthquake in April 2010 - See WeatherActionNews2010 No16 and No17:-

http://climaterealists.com/index.php?id=5559&linkbox=true&position=2

http://www.weatheraction.com/displayarticle.asp?a=189&c=1 (Also earthquake data links)



"Prediction of individual Earthquakes is very hard but we are very confident of a continuing period of significantly enhanced earthquake and volcanic activity as well as extreme weather events for the coming one or two years, probably exceeding the levels of the most active extended periods in at least the last 100 years", said Piers



• Latest long range Weather Action extreme weather events forecasts for FEB are available with instant access for USA, & 'Rest of world'. Purchase now is inclusive of access to the coming forecasts for March- http://bit.ly/dNhlNo



• NASA on dangers of recent solar proton bursts -

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/02/16/solar-flare-4-potential-hazards-of-the-suns-spectacular-show/

[Junkdrawer]

2. Do the backup generators power the cooling pumps in the spent fuel pool?

And do they power the pneumatic seals in the refueling doors. The Union of Concerned Scientists think that was why so many of Fukushima's pools boiled dry.

[hobbit709]

4. The backup generators worked fine until the tsunami hit.

That's where all the problems started. The generators and their fuel supplies were damaged by the water and stopped working.

[xchrom]

3. recommend

[Poll_Blind]

5. So this is a new, different nuclear powerplant in Japan, correct?

Cause if it is we need to get someone to start printing some trading cards so me and my kids can keep track of what's what while we itch our throats.

PB

[Myrina]

6. This sounds like the name for the mothership ...

.... the article refers to reactors 1,2 and 3 and Miyagi Prefecture, which is where the brunt of the tsunami hit last month. So I suspect it's the same place.

[caraher]

7. Same prefecture, different plant

It's like a different nuclear plant in the same US state.

[CJvR]

8. Splashes?

Shouldn't be an issue, it is essentially distiled water.

[Urban Prairie]

10. Same thing should have happened at the Fukushima Dai-Ni plant

With its 4 reactors and their spent fuel pools during the 9.0 temblor last month, and Thursday's strong aftershock, although they weren't mentioned.