[Japan nuclear and chernobyl syndrome] Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

[Japan nuclear and chernobyl syndrome] - Essay Example The nuclear disaster at Fukushima once again revived the memories of the debilitating things that happened at Chernobyl just a few years ago. A large section of media and scientific community went ahead to compare the possible radiation impact of Fukushima disaster with that of Chernobyl. The print and digital media was replete with the reports placing Fukushima and Chernobyl nuclear reactor side by side, portending the two disasters to be very similar and akin in their fallout and intensity. It was only a very few critical minds and concerns who took the time to point out the differences between the two seemingly similar situations. At large, the world seemed to have been taken over by the ghost of Chernobyl, without waiting to critically analyze the facts. Fukushima-the Facts On 11 March 2011, Japan was hit by an earthquake of magnitude 9.0, accompanied by a devastating tsunami. One of the major fallouts of this calamity was the tragic accidents that took place at the Fukushima nuc lear plant. ... When the earthquake occurred, the functional reactors number 1, 2 and 3 automatically came to a halt (Jones: Online). Also, the emergency generators efficiently started to run the water pumps and the emergency control electronics put in place to tackle such exigencies (Jones: Online). The bad thing was that though the Fukushima nuclear plant was well protected by a sea wall, it failed to withstand the massive 14 m tsunami that flooded the reactor in a matter of minutes (Jones: Online). This flooding of the reactor simply jeopardized the low lying water pumps and electronic cooling equipment and spoiled the electrical grid (Jones: Online). With the shutting down of the cooling mechanisms and a zero possibility of extending assistance and support from outside, the reactors 1, 2 and 3 suffered a core meltdown (Jones: Online). The resultant hydrogen explosions blasted the lids capping the buildings in which reactors 1, 3 and 4 were placed (Jones: Online). This was soon followed by rampan t fires caused by the overheating of the reactors (Jones: Online). It is a fact that many of the workers employed at Fukushima nuclear plant suffered radiation exposure and were evacuated. Also, owing to the fears of radiation leakage, people residing in a 20 km radius around the plant were also evacuated (Jones: Online). On 17 March 2011, one of the generators deployed in the reactor number 6 was restarted, thus allowing for the cooling of partially damaged reactor number 5 and 6 (The Straits Times: Online). The restoration of Grid power on 20 March 2011 did not achieve the desired results, because of the largely damaged machinery and infrastructure. Besides, any attempts to repair the reactors were also hampered owing to the