Meltdown: Earthquake, Tsunami, and Nuclear Disaster in Fukushima

by Deirdre Langeland

  seismology: the study of vibration in Earth’s crust; the scientists who study this are called seismologists

  shield: a physical object through which a certain type of radiation cannot pass; it protects anything behind it from that type of radiation

  sievert (Sv): a unit of measure that indicates how much radiation an object has received

  spent fuel: in a nuclear reactor, fuel that is no longer capable of maintaining a chain reaction

  subduction: the process by which one tectonic plate is pushed underneath another

  subduction fault: the area where one tectonic plate is being pushed underneath another

  surface waves: seismic waves that travel along Earth’s surface

  tectonic plate: a massive chunk of Earth’s surface made up of continental crust, oceanic crust, and uppermost mantle; it moves in response to the rising and sinking of the asthenosphere

  tendenko: the traditional Japanese idea that residents of coastal areas should evacuate without delay before a tsunami arrives

  thermal energy: a type of kinetic energy that is felt as heat

  torus: also called a suppression pool or wet well; a doughnut-shaped chamber beneath a nuclear reactor vessel that is designed to contain and cool water during an emergency

  tsunami: a massive wave of water produced by the displacement of a large amount of water, such as would happen during an earthquake or landslide

  turbine: a piece of equipment that uses a force like wind or steam to rotate and produce power

  unstable: a state in which conditions are likely to change; in physics, unstable elements are likely to decay or change form by some other means

  valve: a device that controls the movement of a gas or a liquid into or out of a container

  vent (verb): to release a gas or liquid from a container

  BIBLIOGRAPHY

  EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI INFORMATION

  Books

  Birmingham, Lucy, and David McNeill. Strong in the Rain. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.

  Independent Investigation Commission on the Fukushima Nuclear Accident. The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Disaster: Investigating the Myth and Reality. New York: Routledge, 2014.

  Japan Center of Education for Journalist. Life After the Tsunami, Volume 1: A Collection of the Otsuchi Mirai Shimbun News Reports. Otsuchi, Japan: Otsuchi Mirai Shimbun, 2013.

  Parry, Richard Lloyd. Ghosts of the Tsunami. New York: MCD/Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2017.

  Rafferty, John P. (editor). Plate Tectonics, Volcanoes, and Earthquakes. New York: Britannica Educational Publishing, 2011.

  Reports

  Cosmo Energy Holdings Co., Ltd. “Overview of the Fire and Explosion at Chiba Refinery, the Cause of the Accident and the Action Plan to Prevent Recurrence.” August 2, 2011. (press release)

  Japan Meteorological Agency. “Lessons Learned from the Tsunami Disaster Caused by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Improvements in JMA’s Tsunami Warning System.” Japan Meteorological Agency, October 2013.

  Pradel, Daniel, Joseph Wartman, and Binod Tiwari. “Failure of the Fujinuma Dams During the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake.” Paper presented at Geo-Congress 2013, the American Society of Civil Engineers.

  UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. Levels and Effects of Radiation Exposure Due to the Nuclear Accident after the 2011 Great East-Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. Report to the United Nations General Assembly, 2014.

  Articles

  Buis, Alan. “Japan Quake May Have Shortened Earth Days, Moved Axis.” NASA.gov, March 14, 2011. nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/japanquake/earth20110314.html.

  Chang, Kenneth. “Quake Moves Japan Closer to U.S. and Alters Earth’s Spin.” The New York Times, March 13, 2011.

  Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Seismic Waves.” Encyclopaedia Britannica, August 10, 2012.

  Fackler, Martin. “Powerful Quake and Tsunami Devastate Northern Japan.” The New York Times, March 11, 2011.

  “Factbox: Japan’s Many Earthquakes.” Reuters, July 16, 2007.

  FEMA Region IV Interagency Steering Committee. “A Federal Perspective on Recent Earthquakes.” Partners in Preparedness, July 2011.

  Fujinawa, Yukio, and Yoichi Noda. “Japan’s Earthquake Early Warning System on 11 March 2011: Performance, Shortcomings, and Changes.” Earthquake Spectra, vol. 29, no. S1, March 2013.

  Ishigaki, Akemi, Hikari Higashi, Takako Sakamoto, and Shigeki Shibahara. “The Great East-Japan Earthquake and Devastating Tsunami: An Update and Lessons for the Past Great Earthquakes in Japan since 1923.” Tohoku Journal of Experimental Medicine, vol. 229, no. 4, 2013.

  McCurry, Justin. “Japanese ‘Miracle’ Pine Returns to Tsunami-Hit Town.” The Guardian, July 3, 2013.

  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “March 11, 2011 Japan Earthquake and Tsunami.” March 2015. ftp://ftp.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazards/publications/2011_0311.pdf.

  Pletcher, Kenneth, and John P. Rafferty. “Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011.” Encyclopaedia Britannica, March 4, 2019. britannica.com/event/Japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-of-2011.

  Powell, Devin. “Japan Quake Epicenter Was in Unexpected Location.” Wired.com, March 17, 2011. wired.com/2011/03/japan-earthquake-surpise.

  Schulz, Kathryn. “The Really Big One.” The New Yorker, July 20, 2015.

  Ujiie, Kohtaro, Hanae Tanaka, Tsubasa Saito, et al. “Low Coseismic Shear Stress on the Tohoku-Oki Megathrust Determined from Laboratory Experiments.” Science, vol. 342, no. 6163, December 6, 2013.

  U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program. “Earthquake Summary Map: The M9.0 Great Tohoku Earthquake (Northeast Honshu, Japan) of March 11, 2011.” March 14, 2011. ftp://hazards.cr.usgs.gov/maps/sigeqs/20110311/20110311.pdf.

  U.S. Geological Survey. “Kobe Earthquake Was Deadliest, But Not Largest In ’95.” February 23, 1996. (press release)

  Yamaguchi, A., T. Mori, M. Kazama, and N. Yoshida. “Liquefaction in Tohoku District During the 2011 Off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku Earthquake.” Soils and Foundations, vol. 52, no. 5, December 27, 2012.

  Zielinski, Sarah. “Fault That Caused Japan’s 2011 Earthquake Is Thin and Slippery.” Smithsonian Magazine, December 5, 2013. smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/fault-that-caused-japans-2011-earthquake-is-thin-and-slippery-180948057.

  Online Resources

  Burgess, Joe, Jonathan Corum, Amanda Cox, et al. “How Shifting Plates Caused the Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan.” The New York Times, archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/11/world/asia/maps-of-earthquake-and-tsunami-damage-in-japan.html.

  Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology, “How Often Do Earthquakes Occur?” https://www.iris.edu/hq/inclass/fact-sheet/how_often_do_earthquakes_occur.

  NASA Science. “Solar System Exploration: Earth.” solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/earth/by-the-numbers.

  National Centers for Environmental Information. “Great Tohoku, Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, 11 March 2011.” ngdc.noaa.gov/hazard/11mar2011.html.

  ________. “Tsunami Data and Information.” ngdc.noaa.gov/hazard/tsu.shtml.

  National Hurricane Center and Central Pacific Hurricane Center. “Storm Surge Overview.” nhc.noaa.gov/surge.

  National Weather Service. “Flood Safety Tips and Resources.” weather.gov/safety/flood.

  NOAA Center for Tsunami Research. “Tsunami Forecasting.” nctr.pmel.noaa.gov/tsunami-forecast.html.

  U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program. “M 9.1-2011 Great Tohoku Earthquake, Japan.” earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/official20110311054624120_30/executive.

  Weather Underground. “Historical Weather” (database). wunderground.com/history.

  Williams, David R. “Planetary Fact Sheets.” National Space Science Data Coordinated Archive, NASA. nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planetfact.html.

  Videos

  Clancy688. “Tsunami in Kesennuma City, Ascending the Okawa River.” 25:48 minutes. YouTube, April 8, 2013. youtube.com/watch?v=P
8qFi74k2UE.

  Funahashi, Atsushi, director. Nuclear Nation. 96 minutes. Big River Films, October 13, 2012.

  Kooi, Brent. “Japan Earthquake—Liquefaction in Makuhari.” 3:07 minutes. YouTube, March 26, 2011. youtube.com/watch? v=rn3oAvmZY8k.

  NUCLEAR FISSION AND FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI INFORMATION

  Books

  Atomic Energy Society of Japan Investigation Committee. The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Accident: Final Report of the AESJ Investigation Committee. New York: Springer, 2014.

  Gale, Robert Peter, and Eric Lax. Radiation: What It Is, What You Need to Know. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2013.

  Independent Investigation Commission of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident. The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Disaster: Investigating the Myth and Reality. New York: Routledge, 2014.

  Lochbaum, David, Edwin Lyman, Susan Q. Stranahan, and the Union of Concerned Scientists. Fukushima: The Story of a Nuclear Disaster. New York: The New Press, 2014.

  Mahaffey, James A. Nuclear Power: Nuclear Fission Reactors. New York: Facts on File, 2011.

  ________. Nuclear Power: Radiation. New York: Facts on File, 2011.

  Reports

  International Atomic Energy Agency. The Fukushima Daiichi Accident: Technical Volume 1/5: Description and Context of the Accident. Vienna, Austria: International Atomic Energy Agency, 2015.

  Myllyvirta, Lauri. Air Quality and Health Impacts of New Coal-Fired Power Plants in the Tokyo-Chiba and Osaka-Hyogo Regions. Greenpeace International, May 2016.

  National Research Council. Lessons Learned from the Fukushima Nuclear Accident for Improving Safety and Security of U.S. Nuclear Plants. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2014.

  Tokyo Electric Power Company. “Appendix: Voices of Field Workers.” Measures Taken at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station and Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station. Tokyo: Tokyo Electric Power Company, December 2011.

  World Health Organization. Health Risk Assessment from the Nuclear Accident After the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, Based on a Preliminary Dose Estimation. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization, 2013.

  World Health Organization, Regional Office for the Western Pacific. The Great East Japan Earthquake: A Story of a Devastating Natural Disaster, a Tale of Human Compassion. Manila, Philippines: World Health Organization, 2012.

  Articles

  Adalja, Amesh A., Eric S. Toner, Anita Cicero, Joseph Fitzgerald, and Thomas V. Inglesby. “Radiation at Fukushima: Basic Issues and Concepts.” Clinician’s Biosecurity News, March 31, 2011.

  Associated Press. “Fukushima: Japan Ends Evacuation of Naraha as ‘Radiation at Safe Level.’” The Guardian, September 5, 2015.

  Batty, David. “Japan Shuts Down Last Working Nuclear Reactor.” The Guardian, May 5, 2012.

  Breidthardt, Annika. “German Government Wants Nuclear Exit by 2022 at Latest.” Reuters.com, May 31, 2011.

  Broad, William J. “Scientists Project Path of Radiation Plume.” The New York Times, March 16, 2011.

  Broad, William J., and Hiroko Tabuchi. “In Fuel-Cooling Pools, a Danger for the Longer Term.” The New York Times, March 15, 2011.

  Clegg, Brian. “20 Amazing Facts About the Human Body.” The Guardian, January 26, 2013.

  CNN Wire Staff. “WHO: Radiation in Japan Food ‘More Serious’ Than Thought.” CNN.com, March 21, 2011.

  de Freytas-Tamura, Kimiko. “Radioactive Boars in Fukushima Thwart Residents’ Plans to Return Home.” The New York Times, March 9, 2017.

  Dvorak, Phred, Juro Osawa, and Yuka Hayashi. “Japanese Declare Crisis at Level of Chernobyl.” The Wall Street Journal, April 12, 2011.

  Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Fukushima Accident.” Encyclopaedia Britannica, March 13, 2018.

  Fackler, Martin. “Japanese City’s Cry Resonates Around the World.” The New York Times, April 6, 2011.

  ________. “Japan’s $320 Million Gamble at Fukushima: An Underground Ice Wall.” The New York Times, August 29, 2016.

  ________. “Radiation Fears and Distrust Push Thousands from Homes.” The New York Times, March 17, 2011.

  ________. “Six Years After Fukushima, Robots Finally Find Reactors’ Melted Uranium Fuel.” The New York Times, November 19, 2017.

  ________. “Tsunami Warnings, Written in Stone.” The New York Times, April 20, 2011.

  Fackler, Martin, and Mark McDonald. “Need Overwhelms Japan After Quake and Tsunami.” The New York Times, March 14, 2011.

  ________. “Death Toll Estimate in Japan Soars as Relief Efforts Intensify.” The New York Times, March 13, 2011.

  Goldenberg, Pippa. “How Many Atoms Does It Take for an Element to Become Visible to the Naked Eye?” Jabberwacky, March 13, 2015.

  Grier, Peter. “Fukushima Nuclear Crisis: How Serious Is the Radiation Threat?” Christian Science Monitor, March 15, 2011.

  Gross, Terry. “One Year Later, ‘Inside Japan’s Nuclear Meltdown.’” Fresh Air, National Public Radio, February 28, 2012. npr.org/2012/02/28/147559456/one-year-later-inside-japans-nuclear-meltdown.

  Holguín-Veras, José. “Japan’s 1,000-Year-Old Warning.” Los Angeles Times, March 11, 2012.

  Hong, B. D., and E. R. Slatick. “Carbon Dioxide Emission Factors for Coal.” Quarterly Coal Report, January-April 1994. Washington, D.C.: Energy Information Administration, August 1994.

  Hosaka, Tomoko A. “How One Japanese Village Defied the Tsunami.” NBCNews.com, May 13, 2011.

  Hurst, Daniel. “Town Where Nobody’s Home: Fukushima Communities Struggling to Survive.” The Guardian, March 8, 2018.

  Imanaka, Tetsuji. “External dose assessment for inhabitants in Iitate village until evacuation after the Fukushima-1 NPP accident.” International Nuclear Information System, Vienna: International Atomic Energy Association, 2014.

  “Japan Earthquake: Anger Over Fukushima Evacuation Plan.” BBC.com, March 16, 2011.

  Kono, Etsuo. “Japan’s Otsuchi ‘Wind Phone’ Lets the Living Talk to the Dead.” Financial Review, August 18, 2017.

  Levine, Gregg. “7 Years On, Sailors Exposed to Fukushima Radiation Seek Their Day in Court.” The Nation, March 9, 2018.

  Lim, Megumi. “Seven Years After Tsunami, Japanese Live Uneasily with Seawalls.” Reuters, March 8, 2018.

  Martin, Rachel. “Radiation Levels Force U.S. Ships to Change Course.” Morning Edition, National Public Radio, March 16, 2011.

  Matsuo, Icihro, “Contaminated Waste Bags Still at Risk of Loss in Fukushima.” The Asahi Shimbun, March 18, 2020.

  McCurry, Justin. “Fukushima 50: ‘We Felt Like Kamikaze Pilots Ready to Sacrifice Everything.’” The Guardian, January 11, 2013.

  ________. “Fukushima Disaster: First Residents Return to Town Next to Nuclear Plant.” The Guardian, April 10, 2019.

  ________.“Japan Lifts Evacuation Order for Town Hit by Fukushima Disaster.” The Guardian, March 4, 2020.

  McDonald, Mark, and Kevin Drew. “U.S. Urges Wider No-Go Area Around Nuclear Plant.” The New York Times, March 16, 2011.

  “Memorial Monuments in Sendai of the Great East Japan Earthquake.” Japan Info, November 19, 2015.

  Mori, Nobuhito, Tomoyuki Takahashi, Tomohiro Yasuda, and Hideaki Yanagisawa. “Survey of 2011 Tohoku Earthquake Tsunami Inundation and Run-Up.” Geophysical Research Letters, September 27, 2011.

  “Nuclear Fugitives Return: The Struggle to Repopulate Fukushima.” The Economist, May 26, 2017.

  Osawa, Juro. “Elevated Radioactivity Found in Japanese Milk, Spinach.” The Wall Street Journal, March 19, 2011.

  Rich, Motoko. “In a First, Japan Says Fukushima Radiation Caused Worker’s Cancer Death.” The New York Times, September 5, 2018.

  ________. “Struggling with Japan’s Nuclear Waste, Six Years After Disaster.” The New York Times, March 11, 2017.

  ________. “The Children of Fukushima Return, Six Years After the Nuclear Disaster.” The New York Times, April 21, 2017.

  ________. “The Lonely Towns of Fukushima.” The New York Tim
es, March 10, 2017.

  Rich, Motoko, and Makiko Inoue. “Japan Wants to Dump Nuclear Plant’s Tainted Water. Fishermen Fear the Worst.” The New York Times, December 23, 2019.

  Ryūshō, Kadota. “Homage to Yoshida Masao, the Man Who Saved Japan.” Nippon.com, September 4, 2013.

  Sanders, Katie, and Politifact. “Seven Years after the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster, Japanese Town Rebounds from Zero.” Tampa Bay Times, March 8, 2018.

  “Supermarket Opens in Namie for the First Time Since Fukushima Nuclear Disaster.” Japan Today, July 15, 2019.

  Tabuchi, Hiroko. “Masao Yoshida, Nuclear Engineer and Chief at Fukushima Plant, Dies at 58.” The New York Times, July 9, 2013.

  Tabuchi, Hiroko, David E. Sanger, and Keith Bradsher. “Japan Faces Potential Nuclear Disaster as Radiation Levels Rise.” The New York Times, March 14, 2011.

  Tanaka, Chisato. “Japan Continues to Rely on Coal-Fired Plants Despite Global Criticism.” The Japan Times, October 9, 2018.

  “Town of Futaba Kicks Off Radiation Cleanup with Eye on 2022 Revival.” The Japan Times, December 25, 2017.

  “Tsunami-Hit Okawa Elementary Holds Ceremony Ahead of Closure in March.” The Japan Times, February 24, 2018.

  Wada, Koji, Toru Yoshikawa, Takeshi Hayashi, and Yoshiharu Aizawa. “Emergency Response Technical Work at Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant: Occupational Health Challenges Posed by the Nuclear Disaster.” Occupational and Environmental Medicine, vol. 69, no. 8, August 2012.

  Wald, Matthew L. “Japan Orders Evacuation Near 2nd Nuclear Plant.” The New York Times, March 11, 2011.

  Watanabe, Yosuke. “47,000 People Still Displaced Nine Years after 3/11 Disaster.” The Asahi Shimbun, March 11, 2020.

  Watts, Jonathan, Tania Branigan, and Matthew Taylor. “Japanese Nuclear Plant Hit by Fire and Third Explosion.” The Guardian, March 15, 2011.

  Yoshida, Reiji, and Takahiro Fukada. “Fukushima Plant Site Originally Was a Hill Safe from Tsunami.” The Japan Times, July 13, 2011.

  “The Yoshida Testimony: The Fukushima Nuclear Accident as Told by Plant Manager Masao Yoshida.” The Asahi Shimbun, December 3, 2014.

  Zaveri, Mihir. “Fukushima’s Nuclear Imprint Is Found in California Wine (Drinkers, Don’t Panic).” The New York Times, July 20, 2018.