Radiation Well Above Legal Limit in Japanese Nuclear Plant

After the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan, causing thousands of deaths and destroying many buildings and homes, there are now grave concerns about the radiation of a power plant in Fukushima, located in the north-east of Japan.

The legal limit of radiation from the power plant is 500 micro sievert, which is a standard measure of a dosage of radiation, and yesterday, the Fukushima No. 1 plant rose to 882 micro sievert.  The radiation even rose to 1,204 micro sievert, although only briefly.  Workers at the plant tried to cool down the reactor cores with water, but if they are not able to keep them cool enough, there could possibly be a meltdown at the plant.

This all started after the earthquake and resulting tsunami knocked out the power for days.  Although the plants have backup power, that failed as well, which caused the reactor cores to overheat, causing an explosion and several injuries.  There have been three nuclear reactors affected badly by the quake and tsunami.

The US nuclear regulatory commission was asked for supplies to help with the nuclear contamination, and started distributing potassium iodide to evacuation centers to slow down the body’s absorption of radioactive iodide.