Mar 16 The ‘Fukushima 50’: Nuclear Workers Stay Behind to Brave Plant’s Woes By Lea Winerman As the nuclear crisis continued in Japan Wednesday, the world's attention turned to small corps of thus far anonymous workers who make up the last line of defense against a nuclear catastrophe at the earthquake and tsunami-damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. Continue reading
Mar 15 Mechanics of a Nuclear Meltdown Explained By Jenny Marder After a powerful explosion on Tuesday, Japanese workers are still struggling to regain control of an earthquake and tsunami-damaged nuclear power plant amid worsening fears of a full meltdown. Which raises the questions: What exactly is a nuclear meltdown? And… Continue reading
Mar 15 In Japan, Fears of Radiation Exposure Grow as Nuclear Crisis Worsens By Lea Winerman A doctor checks uses a geiger counter to check the level of radiation on a woman while a soldier in gas mask looks on at a radiation treatment centre in Nihonmatsu city in Fukushima prefecture on March 13, 2011. Photo… Continue reading
Mar 15 Japan’s Reshaped Coastline as Seen From Space By Larisa Epatko View NASA's satellite imagery of Japan's northeastern coast before and after the March 11 tsunami. Continue reading
Mar 14 Watch In California, a Rescue Mission for ‘Iconic’ Franciscan Manzanita Plant California Works to Rescue Franciscan Manzanita Plant from Extinction… Continue watching
Mar 14 Explore Tsunami’s Aftermath in Japan By Travis Daub Google Earth has published updated satellite images that show earthquake and tsunami damage in Japan. Explore these images and view related video and photos. Several of these images require the Google Earth plugin for your Web… Continue reading
Mar 14 Japan’s Nuclear Crisis: Does it Compare to Three Mile Island, Chernobyl? By Jenny Marder Even as Japanese officials try to sort out whether jolted nuclear reactors could slip into full meltdown after Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami, experts are weighing in on how events unfolding there compare to previous high-profile nuclear disasters. The… Continue reading
Mar 14 Third Blast Rocks Japan Nuclear Plant; Death Toll Rises as Bodies Wash Ashore By News Desk Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear facility on March 14. Photo via DigitalGlobe. 10:30 p.m. ET The nuclear crisis in Japan escalated Tuesday after an explosion at an earthquake-hit nuclear power plant damaged a reactor's containment vessel, raising the danger… Continue reading
Mar 11 Afghan Civilian Casualties Database Appears in Unexpected Place: Science We close this week with an unusual collaboration in the world of science. In January, 2011, the military released an entire database of civilian casualties to the journal, Science -- a first for a science magazine. The data… Continue reading
Mar 11 Japan’s Earthquake and Tsunami: How They Happened By Jenny Marder The 8.9-magnitude earthquake that struck coastal Japan on Friday, devastating large swaths of the coast and spawning a powerful tsunami, was caused by the Pacific tectonic plate thrusting underneath the country, and forcing the seabed and ocean water upward. Continue reading