Hi Paul, with all the Doomsday Predictions, hysteria, and general
 misinformation we are getting on the news, I found a much better
 source at MIT School of Nuclear Engineering. Their Web Site also being
 updated as new events occur.

 http://mitnse.com/

 Joel

 Yes that is a very good site. I agree.

 Paul Lamar



Paul,  Joel

I agree as well but MIT is not getting all the news. TEPCO has a history
of covering up incidents.
 #1and #2 were designed by GE about the time USA started their
moratorium.  #3 is a Toshiba design and number 4 was designed by my
friend and co founder of our Institute. Mitsuhiko Tanaka.  He quit 30
years ago because Hitachi installed a known defective pressure vessel in
another south west Japan.

According to him, at least one reactor will melt down but he is not at
all convinced the concrete bunker will contain the pressure. Hydrogen
migrates through concrete.  Like Chernobyl and 3 mile, a hydrogen bubble
will form in the concrete shell.   They will have to vent it off into
the environment or risk an catastrophic explosion.   1 - 3 were using
MOX fuel.  A mix containing high percent of hot  plutonium.  Highly
toxic.
At this moment the control rooms have been evacuated because the
radiation levels are dangerously high.

Number 4 reactor is a different matter.  It is vacant.  It was down for
maintenance and most of the spent fuel rods are out of the reactor and
in a cooling pool.  Most of the water sloshed out of the ten meter deep
pool during the earth quake.  The spent fuel rods are still plenty hot,
but what's worse is there are lots of them in an environment with just a
roof over them.  The water sources were limited and cooling the hot
 reactors were the priority.

Evacuation zone is now a 30km and if the winds shift south, which they
normally are in the winter, Tokyo comes under risk.  News gets worse and
worse.

Tomorrow I'm building a jig to hold my engine mount.


Doug in Japan

They could drop a small GPS guided bomb on the roof and break through to the
swimming pool. Then water bomb the pool with a 747. The jet will not spend
enough time over the site to get radiated.

I don't think the Seawind will be done in time to escape. Better to take
a vacation now and fly out of Osaka. Hoard gasoline for a few days and
you can make it in Mishiwa's car. It is only about 300 miles.
China Eastern for about $550 to LAX. Robin rented the hangar upstairs
apartment to a nurse unfortunately.

Paul Lamar