Airborne radionuclides and test status
I am trying to get a better handle on what has been released and what has arrived in the US via airborne fallout. Below is *preliminary* list I prepared of radionuclides known or thought to have been released, sorted in order of increasing half life:
| Radionuclide | Half-life | Release? | Detected in US? |
| ______________ | __________________ | __________ | _________________ |
| Chlorine-38 | 37 minutes | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Iodine-132 | 2.3 hours | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Iodine-133 | 21 hours | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Lanthanum-140 | 40 hours | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Tellurium-132 | 3.2 days | Confirmed | Reported |
| Xenon-133 | 5.2 days | Confirmed | Reported |
| Iodine-131 | 8 days | Confirmed | Reported |
| Barium-140 | 12.8 days | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Cesium-136 | 13 days | Confirmed | Reported |
| Arsenic-74 | 17.8 days | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Yttrium-91 | 58.5 days | Confirmed | Unknown |
| Cesium-134 | 2 years | Confirmed | Reported |
| Strontium-90 | 28.9 years | Probable | Unknown |
| Cesium-137 | 30 years | Confirmed | Reported |
| Plutonium-239 | 24.1 thousand years | Probable | Unknown |
| Uranium-235 | 700 million years | Probable | Unknown |
| Uranium-238 | 4.47 billion years | Probable | Unknown |
This is not my area of expertise and thus I may have missed some. The "Probable" releases are based on information which suggests that some spent fuel was ejected due to one or more of the hydrogen explosions. For example, from a recent NY Times article:
"The [NRC] document also suggests that fragments or particles of nuclear fuel from spent fuel pools above the reactors were blown “up to one mile from the units,” and that pieces of highly radioactive material fell between two units and had to be “bulldozed over,” presumably to protect workers at the site. The ejection of nuclear material, which may have occurred during one of the earlier hydrogen explosions, may indicate more extensive damage to the extremely radioactive pools than previously disclosed."
Does anyone have information which conflicts or adds to this table I prepared? Note: As for whether the US fallout of radionuclide X poses a risk to someone in the US, that is not the subject of this exercise. It is a tertiary question. First comes a) what can arrive, b) what has arrived, THEN c) what risks if any does that pose. I'm trying to focus on the first two issues and politely ask for your cooperation and patience. Thanks.


Good
Nice table..
Based on some data I more
Based on some data I more recently came across, I updated my chart. It is still probably incomplete, but FWIW:
Some "Dog's Breakfast" huh?
I still have not be able to
I still have not be able to find anyone reporting results from alpha or beta testing in the US (only gamma). I saw a report from a Russian group that detected strontium, but I'm not sure how reliable the source was.
Also, I believe they have already confirmed plutonium in soil samples taken around the reactors in Japan.
that is correct, this is hella' dumb
that is correct, these isotopes are from spent fuel rods and melting reactor cores. can you imagine putting that many nuclear reactors on such a tiny island as Japan?! this boggles the mind.
PLEASE UNDERSTAND THEY ARE HIDING THE RESULTS
PLEASE WAKE UP, dear readers, the US WILL NOT PUBLISH ANY OF THOSE RESULTS AS THEY DO NOT WANT TO LOSE THE POPULATIONS NUCLEAR POWER APPROVAL.
Let me reassure you that even if they have the data, they will not publish it!!
Wake up! It has been 2 weeks since the accident sufficient time to test for all kinds of elements including plutonium and uranium.
Could you please stop assuming that the US and EPA has your best interest in mind?
dogs breakfast anyone
earache my eye.
EPA hides results for different reasons
I agree that the USA population will never get a comprehensive picture of fallout contamination from the US government, however, I believe that the reasons are far more numerous than simply defending nuclear power.
Imagine how devastating it would be for the already faltering US economy if they were to admit that basically all US agriculture is contaminated, and will continue to be contaminated for the foreseeable future. In addition, most everything else you can see and touch is also contaminated in some way.
What good would it do for the EPA to tell everyone that they are ingesting fallout and there's really nothing anyone can do about it? Causing panic in the population by providing facts would really not help anyone, in the opinion of the EPA. At least that's how I interpret the recent actions of the EPA, CDC, et al.
"Causing panic in the
"Causing panic in the population by providing facts would really not help anyone, in the opinion of the EPA"
I think you are wrong, there is plenty we could do. Didn't they warn after 911 to get plastic sheeting and duct tape for our houses? Did that devastate the already faltering economy in the wake of 911? Surely there is more of a threat than a (non existent)terrorist dirty bomb.Let me know how important the faltering economy is when cancer rates spike in the not too distant future (again).
While there is a rationality
While there is a rationality in hiding the full impact, scientifically and morally, this is dangerous. Let people be informed and then they may do as they like;even now, most citizens do not really show concern for radiation.
In analogy, would you tell someone driving a race car that it is safe, or would you be honest and give them a helmet?
I think not telling us is a
I think not telling us is a miscalculation by TPTB. I have never in my life seen so much distrust of the media by the mainstream. Why should they be trusted? There are things we can do to protect ourselves, don't believe the hype!!
Unknown, unknown,
Unknown, unknown, unknown....
The strontium-90 has me very
The strontium-90 has me very concerned as I have seen it mentioned several times from various sources. Yet I have heard no mention of testing having been done for it.
Everything is fine...pay no
Everything is fine...pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.
These aren't the strontium-90 isotopes you're looking for
Good chart.
Good chart.