A French expert on nuclear studies said publicly that the recent partial meltdown at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant has probably released more radiation than the Three Mile nuclear reactor located in Pennsylvania.
The leakages at Fukushima took place after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake rocked the island nation of Japan on Friday.
Nuclear analyst Andre-Claude Lacoste from the Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire in France is certain that the level of radiation emitted from Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant is significantly higher than that of the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor, Bloomberg News reported.
“There is no doubt there was the beginning of a meltdown of the core of reactors 1 and 3 and likely 2 as well,” said Lacoste, according to the news agency.
Following an explosion at No. 1 reactor on Saturday, another took place at No. 3 reactor on Monday with white smoke reported floating into the air.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said that his contacts at the Japan reactor reported that radiation levels increased after the explosions, CNN reported. There has been no mention of an additional leak that could significantly raise the level of contamination.
“We are now collecting information on the concentration of radiation,” said Edano, according to CNN.
Water has been pushed into the No. 3 reactor to give specialists an idea on the condition of the casing of the reactor. No cracks are thought to be present due to the pressure levels recorded after the recent explosion.
Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear disaster occurred at 4 a.m. on March 28, 1978. Assessing the situation was problematic for the press and authorities due to conflicting reports. The nuclear disaster is regarded as the largest nuclear disaster in American history.
Another explosion took place at No. 2 reactor early on Tuesday morning, and a fire is now underway at No. 4 reactor, according to Sky News.
The leakages at Fukushima took place after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake rocked the island nation of Japan on Friday.
Nuclear analyst Andre-Claude Lacoste from the Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire in France is certain that the level of radiation emitted from Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant is significantly higher than that of the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor, Bloomberg News reported.
“There is no doubt there was the beginning of a meltdown of the core of reactors 1 and 3 and likely 2 as well,” said Lacoste, according to the news agency.
Following an explosion at No. 1 reactor on Saturday, another took place at No. 3 reactor on Monday with white smoke reported floating into the air.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said that his contacts at the Japan reactor reported that radiation levels increased after the explosions, CNN reported. There has been no mention of an additional leak that could significantly raise the level of contamination.
“We are now collecting information on the concentration of radiation,” said Edano, according to CNN.
Water has been pushed into the No. 3 reactor to give specialists an idea on the condition of the casing of the reactor. No cracks are thought to be present due to the pressure levels recorded after the recent explosion.
Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear disaster occurred at 4 a.m. on March 28, 1978. Assessing the situation was problematic for the press and authorities due to conflicting reports. The nuclear disaster is regarded as the largest nuclear disaster in American history.
Another explosion took place at No. 2 reactor early on Tuesday morning, and a fire is now underway at No. 4 reactor, according to Sky News.
