Earthquake in Japan

[CheddarLimbo]

From the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12709598

The earthquake, which occurred off the coast, was said to measure somewhere between 8.8 and 8.9, and has triggered a Tsunami that is damaging Japan. Further Tsunami warnings are extending to the Pacific Rim and Russia.

Thoughts and prayers go out to those who are affected.

Update: The Tsunami generated by the quake may has caused waves in excess of 20 feet to crash into Japan's coast. The National Weather Service has also listed Hawaii as one of the many places in danger.

[RoninValentina]

Yeah. Holy #$@%.

There just aren't many words to describe the video Al Jazeera English has been airing.

[Dad_Scaper]

Good luck to Hilo-Scaper & all our friends in areas in danger.

[Carnival Man]

Recommended evacuation for US Pacific Coastal areas...ETA San Fransisco 8:08am...

SF Gate Article:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...0S49.DTL&tsp=1

Tsunami arrival times:
http://wcatwc.arh.noaa.gov/2011/03/1...alhvpd9-05.txt

The waves projected for the SF Bay Area:

4.2 feet for Arena Cove
2.0 feet for Point Reyes
2.4 feet for Fort Point
2.8 feet for Pacifica
3.0 feet for Half Moon Bay
3.3 feet for Santa Cruz
5.3 feet for Rio del Mar
2.9 feet for Point Sur

Doesn't look too bad for us...

[CheddarLimbo]

Japan is blessedly well prepared for earthquakes, it seems. The Tsunami, on the other hand, is causing massive damage. Waves up to 33 feet in height have been reported, sweeping away cars, buses, boats, and possibly one passenger train. Hundreds are already reported dead, with thousands unaccounted for due to the loss of power and communication infrastructure.

Please pray for the health of all involved in their time of need.

EDIT: On the brighter side, while it's too early to tell for sure, it looks like Hawaii is probably not going to be significantly impacted. Initial waves from the tsunami are only a foot or so higher than normal. More here.

[delphic]

There is one of the nuclear reactors that has lost cooling in Japan. They are evacuating the immediate area and have declared a nuclear state of emergency.

The power was lost to the water circulation system, and the backup generators are not working. The control rods have been dropped to slow the reaction however there is always the chance of a meltdown or runaway reaction in these circumstances. The rods can remain hot for months after the reaction has stopped and without cooling the temperature in the chamber will climb very rapidly.

As horrible as the earthquake and tsunami are, this could be a far worse disaster.

Pray for those Workers and Engineers who are risking their lives to try and save the situation and thousands of lives.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/utility-rep...21307-711.html

The other two nuclear plants have sustained damage but are under control.

Delphic

[Chardris1287]

I just heard about this today. It's terrible allright. Already hundreds have died. I heard that the Tsunami has reached Hawaii. Japan is well prepared for earthquakes because it is located on the ring of fire. The ring of Fire is located on the pacific ocean and effects countries like Japan, Western United States, Western South America, Phillippeans, and the like. It is known for it's frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to the constant shifting of tectonic plates benearth the Earth's surface. Japan experiences earthquakes daily, but none of this magnitude! Most earthquakes are hardly felt by the people.

[Greyelephant]

Such a sad story.

Here's some video footage of the havoc being wrecked.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_theenv...ke-and-tsunami

[CheddarLimbo]

The Earthquake has been assessed and the magnitude adjusted to 9.0.

The trouble with the nuclear reactors seems to be growing.

And according to some sources, the power of this earthquake may have actually altered the entire planet's rotation (albeit by an imperceptible amount).

Here is a pretty comprehensive article that covers several aspects of this national tragedy.

[Shockma Ranyk]

Originally Posted by CheddarLimbo

And according to some sources, the power of this earthquake may have actually altered the entire planet's rotation (albeit by an imperceptible amount).

The one in Chile did, didn't it? And that wasn't a 9.0.

Also, death toll.

"Worst disaster since WWII"

[jschild]

For people who've only experienced a 4 or 5.0 earthquake - the amount of power is staggering.

A 9.0 releases 164,316,767 31,622,777 times more energy than a 4.0 - it is staggeringly more powerful.

[delphic]

The highest I've heard for Japan is 9.0 on the Richter Scale which is around 474 megatons of TNT Energy Release.

Hiroshima was 13 kilotons of TNT

The energy output was 36,461 Times that of the "Little Boy" explosion.

When related to the Haiti Quake a Mw-7.0 Or 6.4 Richter, the Japan Quake is 7939 times stronger.

A Richter 4.0 is 15 Tons of TNT energy release

474000000 Tons TNT (474 Megatons) / 15 Tons TNT= 31,600,000 Times the Energy Release.

Bang On correct JSChild.

Anyone wondering Mw is the Moment Magnitude Scale where the Richter scale is the more common and less sophisticated scale. Moment Magnitude gives more precise results for mid-range earthquakes, but returns almost identical results for quakes of this size.

Delphic