What caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster?
Q: What caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster?
A: The Fukushima nuclear disaster was caused by a series of ongoing equipment failures, reactor meltdowns, and releases of radioactive materials at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011.
Q: How many reactors were maintained by TEPCO at the time of the quake?
A: At the time of the quake, there were six separate Nuclear reactors maintained by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO).
Q: What happened after all reactors shut down automatically?
A: After all reactors shut down automatically, the entire plant was flooded including low-lying generators and electrical switchgear in reactor basements and external pumps for supplying cooling seawater. The connection to the electrical grid was broken and all power for cooling was lost causing reactors to overheat.
Q: What is believed to be one consequence of this disaster?
A: One consequence that is believed to have resulted from this disaster is that worldwide measurements of iodine-131 and caesium-137 indicate that releases from Fukushima are of same order magnitude as those from Chernobyl in 1986. Additionally, food grown in areas around Fukushima has been banned from sale due to plutonium contamination detected in soil samples taken near the plant.
Q: How did workers suffer radiation exposure?
A: Workers suffered radiation exposure when standing in water inside unit 3 which exposed them up to 6000 mSv of radiation at their ankles.
Q: How did this event affect plans for future nuclear power plants?
A: This event prompted leading energy-consuming countries to review safety measures for existing reactors while casting doubt on speed and scale planned expansions around world. As a result, International Energy Agency halved its estimate additional nuclear generating capacity be built by 2035.
