radiation

A bill that would require California retailers to inform consumers of the possible health risks of cell phone use received its first reading this week in the Rules Committee of the state senate. Following minor amendments, the legislation now proceeds to the Senate Environmental Quality Committee for initial consideration.

Sponsored by Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), SB 932 would require retailers to include notices on product packaging that cell phones emit radio frequency (RF) energy. A second notice also must be posted at the point of sale when purchasing online or in a physical store.

In an interview with CNET, … Read more

TOKYO--Japanese authorities are planning to use a Honeywell T-Hawk micro air vehicle to check radiation levels at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, while unmanned drone helicopters from France are also joining the effort.

Small enough to fit in a backpack, Honeywell's T-Hawk can do vertical takeoffs and landings and hover in place while monitoring a target. The U.S. government apparently proposed it for checking radiation levels at spent nuclear fuel pools at the plant, according to a Kyodo News report.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has been trying to cool the spent fuel in the pools with water. Radiation around the pools is believed to be very high, hindering workers' efforts to restart cooling systems. There are over 10,000 spent fuel rods at the site.

The 17-pound T-Hawk can fly to 10,000 feet and work in 20-knot winds, with a top speed of 46 mph and operating time of 56 minutes. It can operate autonomously or by remote control. Check out the vid below for details. … Read more

San Francisco's board of supervisors has agreed to put its Right-to-Know Ordinance under further review after the wireless industry's lobbying arm claimed the legislation infringes on the First Amendment rights of cell phone retailers.

In an interview with CNET, CTIA spokesman John Walls said the city cannot force retailers to distribute materials that warn consumers about the possible negative effects of cell phone radiation. "You can't compel speech," he said. "Telling retailers to give out that information violates the First Amendment."

The free speech argument is just the latest in a series of … Read more

Amid a full-blown humanitarian crisis from a massive earthquake and tsunami, Japan is racing against time to avert a nuclear catastrophe.

Plant workers at Fukushima Daiichi are struggling to cool the reactors and spent fuel held in pools also on site. Because of explosions caused by the buildup of hydrogen, it is believed that two of the containment structures that hold the reactors have been breached, greatly increasing risk of a release of a large amount or radioactive material.

Although it's still an unstable situation, it's clear the damage at the Fukushima Daiichi plant is worse than the … Read more

Problems are cascading at a Japanese power plant, where explosions and fires are making it dangerous for workers to try to keep new overheating problems in check.

The Fukushima Daiichi plant on the northeast coast of Japan, with six reactors, was damaged by last week's magnitude 9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunamis. When the natural disaster struck, reactors 1, 2, and 3 were running and units 4, 5, and 6 were shut down for a regular inspection.

The first overt problems appeared at the three operating reactors, where heat remains an issue even though control rods were automatically inserted … Read more

The intensifying nuclear crisis in Japan is raising anxieties on both sides of the Pacific over the potential impacts of radiation exposure, and a relative dearth of official information on radiation levels is leading some to turn to crowdsourced options.

Japanese officials warned residents living near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to stay indoors after a third explosion at the plant in four days, followed by elevated radiation levels around the plant, which the officials said were high enough to harm human health. Panic was reported in Tokyo, as radiation levels rose to as much as 23 times the … Read more

U.S. Navy officials in Japan announced early today that they have repositioned their 7th Fleet after 17 Navy personnel aboard three helicopters tested positive for low levels of contamination from a radioactive plume that rose above the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and its strike group were roughly 100 miles northeast of the plant at the time of the explosion, but three helicopters had flown closer to help with relief efforts, reported the fleet's public affairs office.

Fleet spokesman Cmdr. Jeff A. Davis told The New York Times that the levels of … Read more

Updated throughout with new details at approximately 11:10 a.m. PT on Sunday.

A Saturday explosion at a closely monitored nuclear power plant in northern Japan and the expectation of another explosion at a second reactor are further distracting rescue efforts of thousands of stranded and missing in the aftermath of one of the largest earthquakes on record.

Officials initially reported that a meltdown at the first crippled reactor was not imminent, but on Sunday admitted that partial meltdowns may have occurred at two reactors, reported The New York Times. By Sunday afternoon local time, The Washington Post reported … Read more

Almost 3,000 residents near the Fukushima I nuclear power plant 170 miles northeast of Tokyo are evacuating the area after the 8.9-magnitude earthquake triggered a power outage that left a cooling system unable to supply water to cool the reactor. Radiation levels in the control room rose to 1,000 times above normal levels, Marketwatch reports.

Some radiation has now leaked outside the plant, Public Broadcaster NHK quoted nuclear safety officials as saying, with levels just outside the main gate measured eight times the normal level.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told reporters that residents have been instructed … Read more