Earthquake activity is still high near Japan. In the past 14 days since the major (9.0M, 32km depth) earthquake devastated the country, about 750 earthquakes above 4.2M have been reported near Japan (especially near the easter seismic fault). Some of them occurred near Fukushima or Tokyo. With magnitudes between 4.2 and 6.6, the earthquake swarm is notable.
Yesterday, March 23 at 07:12 AM, a 5.7M earthquake at a dept of only 1Km was registered in the Fukushima Prefecture area, followed by a 5.4M at 07:36AM (only 16km depth).
(Click image to enlarge)
Here you can check out Japan’s earthquake activity: www.japanquakemap.com
The following video is another proof that Japan goes through some serious trouble due to the increasing seismic activity (after 0:50):
Neutron beam observed 13 times at crippled Fukushima nuke plant
TOKYO, March 23
Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Wednesday it has observed a neutron beam, a kind of radioactive ray, 13 times on the premises of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant after it was crippled by the massive March 11 quake-tsunami disaster.
TEPCO, the operator of the nuclear plant, said the neutron beam measured about 1.5 kilometers southwest of the plant’s No. 1 and 2 reactors over three days from March 13 and is equivalent to 0.01 to 0.02 microsieverts per hour and that this is not a dangerous level.
The utility firm said it will measure uranium and plutonium, which could emit a neutron beam, as well. In the 1999 criticality accident at a nuclear fuel processing plant run by JCO Co. in Tokaimura, Ibaraki Prefecture, uranium broke apart continually in nuclear fission, causing a massive amount of neutron beams.
In the latest case at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, such a criticality accident has yet to happen. But the measured neutron beam may be evidence that uranium and plutonium leaked from the plant’s nuclear reactors and spent nuclear fuels have discharged a small amount of neutron beams through nuclear fission. (Click for Source: Kyodo).
