#radiaiton

[1984welcomesyou]

Surgeon General Regina Benjamin on Buying Iodide-One of the only US officials to publicly take a stand regarding the nuclear power plant crisis in Japan is the

[jhavelikes]

" The highest concentrations of radioactive strontium were found 130 kilometres from the coast, in the eddies that form at the meeting point between the Kuroshio and Oyashi ocean currents. The levels of strontium-90 were compared with those of caesium 137, collected in the same survey. This allows researchers to estimate that between March and June 2011 the nuclear accident led to a release into the sea of between 90 and 900 Tbq of Sr-90. "Although on a global scale, the Fukushima Dai-ichi accident and the amounts released from March to June, 2011 meant a relatively small increase in this radioisotope in the oceans -- less than 1% -- the impact on the area studied was very obvious, showing the need to continue monitoring it and assess its possible effects on coastal fauna," explains Núria Casacuberta, an ICTA researcher at the time of the survey and now a researcher at ETH-Zurich. "Since June 2011 there have been further large discharges of strontium from Fukushima that have not been measured with precision. This does not necessarily mean that levels are now higher than two years ago: they could even be lower, as the isotope is diluted and dispersed over time. Whatever the case, however, more research is needed into the impact of radioactivity on the areas that were most affected," explains Pere Masqué, coordinator of the study. Radiostrontium discharges in Japan had not been sufficiently studied until now, mainly due to the difficulty of analysing it in seawater samples. The presence in the marine environment of other radioisotopes like Iodine 131, Cs 137 and 134 (among others), has been tracked relatively exhaustively, but this is not the case with Sr-89 and 90. The only data available up to a few months ago were from measurements taken in the discharge channels of the plant itself, which were published by the Japanese Ministry of Science and Technology and the Tokyo Electric Company (TEPCO). This study, as well as helping to assess the impact of radionuclide releases into the marine environment soon after the Fukushima accident, serves as a starting-point for other studies that are currently under way. Also, the signal from several radioactive isotopes will last for decades and can be used to track the dynamics of currents in the Northern Pacific. An important radioactive isotope Along with caesium-137, Sr-90 is one of the most important artificial radioactive isotopes released into the environment, with a half-life of 30 years. Strontium's chemical behaviour is similar to that of calcium, and it can accumulate in organisms, especially in bone. Before the Fukushima Dai-ichi accident, Sr-90 was present in the oceans in concentrations of approximately 1 to 1.5 Bq·m-3. The main sources of this radionuclide in the marine environment are fallout from the atmospheric nuclear tests performed in the 50s and 60s, calculated at around 116 PBq, and the discharges from the Sellafield (UK) and La Hague (Fr) nuclear reprocessing plants (approximately 4000 Tbq), contributing principally to the presence of this radioisotope from the Atlantic to the Arctic. Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google: Other social bookmarking and sharing tools: | Story Source: The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, via AlphaGalileo. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above. Journal Reference: N. Casacuberta, P. Masqué, J. Garcia-Orellana, R. Garcia-Tenorio, K. O. Buesseler. 90Sr and 89Sr in seawater off Japan as a consequence of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear accident. Biogeosciences Discussions, 2013; 10 (2): 2039 DOI: 10.5194/bgd-10-2039-2013 Need to cite this story in your essay, paper, or report? Use one of the following formats: APA MLA Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (2013, June 11). Fukushima accident raised levels of radioactive strontium off the east coast of Japan by up to 100 times. ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 13, 2013, from http://bit.ly/16fOvqJ /releases/2013/06/130611084207.htm Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead. enlarge Collecting water samples off the eastern coast of Japan during the oceanographic research campaign. (Credit: Núria Casacuberta) Related Topics Matter & Energy Weapons Technology Nuclear Energy Physics Earth & Climate Oceanography Geography Renewable Energy Articles Heavy metals Sea water Calcium Carbon-14 Algal bloom Basalt rock Related Stories Capsule for Removing Radioactive Contamination from Milk, Fruit Juices, Other Beverages (Mar. 27, 2012) — Amid concerns about possible terrorist attacks with nuclear materials, and fresh memories of environmental contamination from the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan, scientists have ...  > read more For Disaster Debris Arriving from Japan, Radiation Least of the Concerns (Feb. 22, 2012) — Later this year debris from the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan should begin to wash up on US shores -- and one question many have asked is whether that will pose a radiation risk. The ...  > read more Scientists Assess Radioactivity in the Ocean from Japan Nuclear Power Facility (Dec. 12, 2011) — With current news of additional radioactive leaks from the Fukushima nuclear power plants, the impact on the ocean of releases of radioactivity from the plants remains ...  > read more Observations of Fallout from the Fukushima Reactor Accident in San Francisco Bay Area Rainwater (Sep. 21, 2011) — Researchers report that Japan's power plant accident fallout extended as far as the San Francisco Bay area, resulting in elevated levels of radioactive material that were nonetheless very low and ...  > read more Fukushima-Related Radioactive Materials Measured Across Entire Northern Hemisphere (Apr. 7, 2011) — Since the double disaster of the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that affected hundreds of thousands of people and seriously damaged the Fukushima Daichi power plant in Japan on 11 March 2011, ...  > read more Search ScienceDaily Number of stories in archives: 138,260 Find with keyword(s):   Enter a keyword or phrase to search ScienceDaily's archives for related news topics, the latest news stories, reference articles, science videos, images, and books. Recommend ScienceDaily on Facebook, Twitter, and Google: Other social bookmarking and sharing services: |   Just In: Deep Biosphere Harbors Thriving Microorganisms   more breaking science news Social Networks Follow ScienceDaily on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:  Facebook     Twitter     Google+ Recommend ScienceDaily on Facebook, Twitter, and Google +1: Other social bookmarking and sharing tools: | Breaking News ... from NewsDaily.com Cuba girds for climate change by reclaiming coasts Cheetah's acceleration power key to their success Restrictive drug laws censor science, researchers say Wildlife agency to list all chimps as endangered Mayor to discuss prepping NYC for warming world Chinese craft blasts into space on docking mission Search for 1st Web page takes detour into US IEA: Energy emissions rose to record high in 2012 more science news In Other News ... Government considers options to help Syrian opposition, Kerry says Syrian rebels press US and allies to send weapons Tunisia jails three Europeans for topless feminist protest Cuba girds for climate change by reclaiming coasts Jordan removes last hurdle to cleric's extradition from UK Greek PM refuses to back down on state TV closure Iran nuke policy 'unchangeable' no matter who wins Brazil offers new credit line as Rousseff pushes positive agenda more top news Science Video News Tracking Global Carbon With the annual, steady increase of global warming and carbon discharge, atmospheric chemists are gathering air samples on behalf of the National. ...  > full story Climatologists, Oceanographers Track Climate-changing Ocean Pattern Cardiologists Discover New Enzyme that Predicts Risk of Heart Attack Physicist Calls for Airline Industry to Educate Workers about Radiation Levels more science videos Strange Science News   Male Guppies Reproduce Long After Death Big Movies and Other Cultural Products Have Evolutionary Roots Filmmaking Magic With Polymers Saliva Proteins May Protect Older People from Influenza Network of Cameras Used to Track People in Complex Indoor Settings more strange science news Free Subscriptions ... from ScienceDaily Get the latest science news with our free email newsletters, updated daily and weekly. Or view hourly updated newsfeeds in your RSS reader: Email Newsletters RSS Newsfeeds Feedback ... we want to hear from you! Tell us what you think of ScienceDaily -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. Have any problems using the site? Questions? Your Name: Your Email: Comments: Click button to submit feedback:  Save  Email  Print  Share   " June 12, 2013 at 08:53PM

Fukushima accident raised levels of radioactive strontium off the east coast of Japan by up to 100 times http://bit.ly/14xIyW9