http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. After the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunami in Japan on March 11, 2011, the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant was severely compromised and radioactive material was found in the water in many of the surrounding areas, but the extent of this contamination remained unknown. http://phys.org/news235846611.html Space & Earth Wed, 21 Sep 2011 17:57:05 EST news235846611 When the Tohoku earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station on March 11, 2011, the world witnessed the largest nuclear incident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. In a special Fukushima issue of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, published today by SAGE, experts examine the current and future impact of Fukushima, what might have been done to lessen the scale of the accident, and the steps we need to take both in Japan and worldwide to prevent another nuclear tragedy. This content will be free to access for a limited period. http://phys.org/news235711633.html Technology Tue, 20 Sep 2011 04:27:44 EST news235711633 The amount of radiation released during the Fukushima nuclear disaster was so great that the level of atmospheric radioactive aerosols in Washington state was 10,000 to 100,000 times greater than normal levels in the week following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that triggered the disaster. http://phys.org/news234805877.html Space & Earth Fri, 09 Sep 2011 16:51:47 EST news234805877 Japan's Teijin Chemicals Limited said Wednesday it had created a plastic that emits a blue light when exposed to radioactivity, which it says will lead to cheaper radiation detectors. http://phys.org/news234620894.html Chemistry Wed, 07 Sep 2011 13:29:11 EST news234620894 With expected damage claims estimated as high as 90 billion Euros, the nuclear accident in Fukushima represents the largest liability case in Japanese history. Claims for compensation are expected from various categories of victims, including evacuated plant workers and citizens, impacted farmers and fishermen, and representatives of industry and tourism. Notwithstanding the unlimited liability imposed on nuclear operators under Japanese law, lump-sum State payments have been initiated in connection with extra-judicial proceedings. The economic burden thus primarily falls upon the treasury but will also impact the financial institutions which are being required by the government to make the necessary financial support available; other energy providers may be required to bear a financial burden as well, with the result that consumers could ultimately face higher energy prices. These are some of the conclusions reached by a newly released study of the Japan Unit at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law. http://phys.org/news233486716.html Other Sciences Thu, 25 Aug 2011 10:25:28 EST news233486716 Among the lessons to be learned from the accident at Japan’s Fukushima Daichii nuclear powerplant, according to a new report from MIT, are that emergency generators should be better protected from flooding and other extreme natural events, and that increasing the spacing between reactors at the same site would help prevent an incident at one reactor from damaging others nearby. http://phys.org/news233398580.html Technology Wed, 24 Aug 2011 09:56:49 EST news233398580 Japan's Honda is hoping to retool its humanoid robot ASIMO for a nuclear mission so it can join emergency work inside the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant, a press report said Friday. http://phys.org/news232351180.html Electronics Fri, 12 Aug 2011 06:59:57 EST news232351180 Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) said Monday it had monitored record high radiation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant crippled by the March 11 quake and tsunami. http://phys.org/news231425376.html Space & Earth Mon, 01 Aug 2011 13:50:03 EST news231425376 Japan will seek to extract natural gas from seabed deposits of methane hydrate, also known as "burning ice", in the world's first such offshore experiment, a news report said Monday. http://phys.org/news230783347.html Technology Mon, 25 Jul 2011 03:29:21 EST news230783347 Japan on Sunday shifted to digital terrestrial broadcasting, switching off its analogue television network in all areas except those worst hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, the government said. http://phys.org/news230783174.html Technology Mon, 25 Jul 2011 03:26:27 EST news230783174 Chubu Electric said Friday it will build an 18-metre (60 foot) anti-tsunami seawall to protect its ageing Hamaoka nuclear plant located near a faultline in a region seen as vulnerable to earthquakes. http://phys.org/news230563090.html Technology Fri, 22 Jul 2011 14:18:21 EST news230563090 As workers continue to grapple with the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear powerplant in Japan, the crisis has shone a spotlight on nuclear reactors around the world. In June, The Associated Press released results from a yearlong investigation, revealing evidence of “unrelenting wear” in many of the oldest-running facilities in the United States. http://phys.org/news230441851.html Electronics Thu, 21 Jul 2011 04:39:07 EST news230441851 Japan's earthquake in March is set to make 2011 the costliest year to date for natural disasters, reinsurer Munich Re said on Tuesday, although the number of deaths globally is relatively low so far. http://phys.org/news229678408.html Space & Earth Tue, 12 Jul 2011 08:33:44 EST news229678408 The German parliament sealed plans Friday to phase out nuclear energy by 2022, making the country the first major industrial power to take the step in the wake of the disaster at Japan's Fukushima plant. http://phys.org/news229339505.html Technology Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:25:17 EST news229339505 Air conditioning has been switched off, office hallways are darkened and escalators have ground to a halt as a government decree to reduce power usage forces Tokyo to sweat out a hot summer. http://phys.org/news228630232.html Technology Thu, 30 Jun 2011 07:00:05 EST news228630232 India's commerce minister has called for more cooperation with the United States on nuclear energy and brushed aside talk of scrapping ambitious plans in the wake of Japan's Fukushima crisis. http://phys.org/news228108629.html Technology Fri, 24 Jun 2011 04:30:46 EST news228108629 Tokyo Electric Power Co. Saturday halted an operation to clean highly contaminated waste water at a crippled Japanese nuclear plant due to higher-than-expected radiation levels. http://phys.org/news227595680.html Technology Sat, 18 Jun 2011 06:01:31 EST news227595680 As America struggles down the road toward a coherent energy policy that focuses on a higher degree of self-reliance, policymakers face numerous issues and realities. These include: the finite supply and environmental impact of fossil fuels, the feasibility and costs to implement a widespread switch to renewable energy sources, and the variables that lead to consumers' preferences for particular types of power generation. http://phys.org/news227190149.html Technology Mon, 13 Jun 2011 13:22:42 EST news227190149 Scientists from Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) are joining colleagues from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, several other U.S. academic institutions and laboratories in Japan and Spain on the first international, multidisciplinary assessment of the levels and dispersion of radioactive substances in the Pacific Ocean off the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan. The research effort is funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. http://phys.org/news226861458.html Space & Earth Thu, 09 Jun 2011 18:04:43 EST news226861458 Nuclear regulatory agencies called on Wednesday for national watchdogs to complete post-Fukushima checks but stressed plant operators should not escape their "prime responsibility" for reactor safety. http://phys.org/news226763336.html Technology Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:49:13 EST news226763336 Germany on Monday announced plans to become the first major industrialised power to shut down all its nuclear plants in the wake of the disaster in Japan, with a phase-out due to be wrapped up by 2022. http://phys.org/news225945560.html Technology Mon, 30 May 2011 04:00:01 EST news225945560 In the wake of the disaster at the Fukushima reactor, Japan and other nations are re-evaluating their attitude to nuclear energy. Cambridge academic Tony Roulstone believes it is vital for governments and industry to proactively and openly develop nuclear strategy in light of this incident. http://phys.org/news225365885.html Technology Mon, 23 May 2011 10:50:01 EST news225365885 German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Saturday that 2022 was "a good time" for Germany to end nuclear power, backing a proposal by the Bavarian wing of her party. http://phys.org/news225286931.html Technology Sun, 22 May 2011 12:42:26 EST news225286931 (AP) -- Panasonic Corp., which faces a tough road this year after Japan's earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis, believes it can turn disaster into opportunity as the country rethinks its energy policy. http://phys.org/news225108267.html Technology Fri, 20 May 2011 11:04:54 EST news225108267 Among the casualties of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and resulting tsunami in Japan was the country's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. http://phys.org/news225017977.html Space & Earth Thu, 19 May 2011 10:00:00 EST news225017977 The potential health consequences of the nuclear crisis at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant are not equal to those caused by the disaster at Chernobyl, Japanese health officials said Tuesday http://phys.org/news224863691.html Space & Earth Tue, 17 May 2011 15:08:51 EST news224863691 Japan and the United States are eyeing a plan to jointly construct an underground nuclear waste storage complex in Mongolia, a newspaper report said Monday. http://phys.org/news224175900.html Technology Mon, 09 May 2011 16:05:28 EST news224175900 Japan's Toshiba on Monday said it returned to the black for the year to March, but warned the outlook remains uncertain due to the impact of the massive quake and tsunami in March. http://phys.org/news224133516.html Technology Mon, 09 May 2011 04:19:15 EST news224133516 Japanese police are to set up a DNA database to help identify the bodies of those killed in the March earthquake and tsunami, reports said Tuesday. http://phys.org/news223646922.html Medicine & Health Tue, 03 May 2011 13:08:53 EST news223646922 The world on Tuesday marks a quarter century since the world's worst nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in Ukraine, haunted by fears over the safety of atomic energy after the Japan earthquake. http://phys.org/news222948742.html Other Sciences Mon, 25 Apr 2011 11:40:01 EST news222948742