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29 Mar 2011 10:41

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World: More Fukushima drama: Plutonium found in the ground nearby

  • Plutonium is a substance that’s emitted when the temperature is high, and it’s also heavy and so does not leak out easily. So if plutonium has emerged from the reactor, that tells us something about the damage to the fuel. And if it has breached the original containment system, it underlines the gravity and seriousness of this accident.
  • Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency deputy director Hidehiko Nishiyama • Discussing what the finding of plutonium in the ground near the Fukushima reactors means. No, that doesn’t sound very good at all. In other news, France sent over some of their most knowledgable nuclear experts to help out the Japanese. The surrender-prone European nation is also the one most dependent on nuclear energy. source

25 Mar 2011 17:35

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World: Japan Prime Minister on Fukushima: We’re not out of the woods yet

  • Don’t consider the situation at Fukushima settled just yet. That’s the message that Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, in his first statements on the matter in over a week, would like to make clear. “We are making efforts to prevent it from getting worse, but I feel we cannot become complacent,” he said. “We must continue to be on our guard.” Kan’s comments come in the wake of high instability at some of the plants — yesterday, two workers got radiation burns on their feet while working on Fukushima’s No. 3 unit, which is the most dangerous of the bunch due to its use of a mixture of uranium and plutonium. The situation led to fresh concerns about whether there might be a leak in that reactor. TEPCO officials are still looking for the cause of the high radiation levels. source

13 Jun 2009 11:41

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World: The world boosts its sanctions. North Korea sez “SCREW. YOU.”

  • No matter how hard the U.S.-led hostile forces may try all sorts of isolation and blockade, the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea), a proud nuclear power, will not flinch from them.
  • North Korea • Which said it would weaponize its plutonium and enrich uranium in response to sanctions that were put on them by the rest of the world. Because that’s gonna help matters. • source

07 May 2009 20:40

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Tech, U.S.: We ended the cold war, hoo-ray! Wait, where’s our space fuel?

  • one Because of the Cold War, the U.S. had a massive nuclear weapon supply, and as a result a huge supply of Plutonium. Oh, and a crazy space race.
  • two Now, thanks to the Cold War ending a while ago, we stopped saving plutonium and now we don’t have enough fuel for deep space exploration. Crap.
  • three To make up for the demand, needed for trips past Jupiter, the Department of Energy said that they would start making Plutonium 438 again. Woot. source