福島第一 Fukushima Unit 3 Reactor Well

Looking directly at the reactor well of Unit 3 before the explosion:

(1) http://images.scribblelive.com/2011/5...

(2) http://images.scribblelive.com/2011/5...

@ http://www.houseoffoust.com/fukushima...

Accurate floor plan of Units 3 and 4 (location of containment lid reflects its location in Unit 4 since the reactor in Unit 4 is empty and opened), in the video we're looking through the open Tool Pit into (or onto) the Reactor Well (exactly as in the photos above)):
http://www.houseoffoust.com/fukushima...

Images that show Unit 3 was bellowing steam heavily, centered from the reactor well
March 17
http://blogs-images.forbes.com/oshada...
On or before March 21
http://media.syracuse.com/news/photo/...

Infrared images on Unit 3 show the hot spots around the primary containment:
The hottest spot is the largest point of emission seen in this video.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ig...

3号機の赤外画像は原子炉格納容器の周りのホットスポットを表示
ホットスポットはこのビデオで見られる最大の蒸気排出量のポイントです。

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  News & Politics

[redbuttonstudio]

1:07 Unit 3 fuel pool - gentle steam from it

that must be the craziest Japanese to English translation i've seen in a while...

[GoddardsJournal]

@redbuttonstudio, actually it's not a translation bug. My point is to highlight that there is steam gently wafting up from the greenish fuel pool, which stands in contrast to the fast-ejecting steam from the reactor well. Since the fuel-pool steam differs, this eliminates the pool as a likely source for all the steam seen.

Some of the faster steam from the reactor well is ejected just above the pool, but it can be clearly differentiated from the steam gently rising directly from the pool 1:05.

[biukucanoe]

That's not the reactor well. Well is bounded by 2 central squares around center of long wall, what you see is collapsed crane sitting on top of equipment pool gate. Water from fuel pool has probably leaked onto reactor cap, and steam is coming out of edges of concrete plug which is still in place.

[GoddardsJournal]

@biukucanoe, the steam is coming from the reactor well. And it's now admitted that Reactor 3 suffered meltdown. Also, the footage above shows Fuel-Pool 3 (FP3) is full. So there's no indication that FP3 is emptying into the reactor well.

There's also no report that FP3 is ruptured. So, imo, an explanation based on the known (meltdown) trumps one based on conjecture of unknown entities (a ruptured FP3), esp when the unknown entity contradicts observations (FP3 is not emptying as if ruptured).

[drdrwoland]

I am not so sure that this is steam. It looks mor elike smoke to me, it is not acting like steam. I think this may be particulate vapour. We have tracked the grey smoke releases which were reported on 21st March to Tokyo and Ibaraki: there was no event recorded at that time by IAEA except grey smoke. Itr pushed up the gammas at Tokyo and Ibaraki and they stayed up. I think boiling fuel.

[GoddardsJournal]

@drdrwoland, I agree, sometimes the 'stream' moves more like dense smoke. And sometimes it sinks like the way dry-ice gas flows. While I'm no steam-behavior expert, I think it's reasonable to assume there's a lot more in that white vapor than harmless H20!

[redbuttonstudio]

today proofs consist of proving them wrong...:(

[redbuttonstudio]

Nice point,i wasn't even aware of difference.You are right, 1:44 another proof. I responded a bit emotionally,it's this primal fear i feel by just watching it (thou now i feel even worse).This steam is to me everything else than gently.Creepy,deadly,gushing,i fear it like animal fears fire.I also saw recently a lot of Japanese translations, that were using words like happy (plant) nice and sad. Confusing... But the point is really not in translation, but in meaning. Good work!

[floydstinkyboy]

it's an outrage this has fallen out of the news.

[Squirrelcaster]

Well, there has been next to nothing on the news since the initial episode here in Australia, and most other places from what I can gather, so can't be that bad, hey!? :( There must be some 'very strong' influence coming from somewhere to keep all this quiet. In the end, obviously will be worse than Chernobyl. That was sudden and severe, this just goes on and on with no end in sight, and no guarantee of any more radiation(MOX fuel of all things!) spreading explosions.