Japan earthquake

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Fukushima Radiation Found in California Kelp

'It's not a good thing,' says researcher

(Newser) - A major fallout from Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant disaster has hit the coast of California, according to scientists. Radioactive iodine was found in giant kelp beds off Laguna Beach to Santa Cruz within a month of the meltdown, reports the Los Angeles Times . The radiation "represents a significant...

Next Japanese Tsunami: More Than Twice as High

A 9.0 earthquake could trigger 112-foot tsunami

(Newser) - Much of Japan's Pacific coast could be inundated by a tsunami more than 115 feet high if a powerful earthquake hits offshore, according to revised estimates by a government panel. The panel of experts says any tsunami unleashed by a magnitude-9.0 earthquake in the Nankai trough, which runs...

2nd Quake Strikes Japan, Near Tokyo

Registered as magnitude 6.1

(Newser) - An earthquake has rattled the Tokyo area hours after a stronger tremor caused a small tsunami on the northern Japanese coast. The Japan Meteorological Agency said the second earthquake was magnitude 6.1, and took place just off the coast of Chiba, east of Tokyo, at a rather shallow 6...

6.8-Magnitude Quake Rattles Japan

Town of Otsuchi issued an evacuation order

(Newser) - A strong earthquake shook northern Japan last night, causing small tidal changes on its Pacific coastline; no damage or injury was reported. Several towns issued evacuation orders or advisories to residents nearest the coast. A swelling of 8 inches was observed in the port of Hachinohe in Aomori, northern Japan,...

Somber Japan Marks Year Since Quake

Country pauses to remember its dead

(Newser) - At 2:46pm local time today, people all across Japan stood in silence to remember the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami exactly one year ago that killed more than 19,000 people, destroyed 370,000 homes, and created the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, reports the AP...

Global Happiness Tops Pre-Recession Levels
 Global Happiness Tops 
 Pre-Recession Levels 
Ipsos Poll
Feb 26, 2012 7:54 AM CST

Global Happiness Tops Pre-Recession Levels

Happiness up most in developing world; rich Europe gloomier

(Newser) - People are happier today than they were before the worldwide recession hit, according to an Ipsos survey of 19,000 adults in 24 countries, reports the Economist . Those calling themselves "happy" numbered 77% in the poll, up from 74% in 2007, and those who labeled themselves "very happy"...

Japan's Economy Shrinks More Than Expected

Rising yen, falling international demand, led to 2.3% contraction

(Newser) - Economists were expecting the Japanese economy to contract in the last quarter of 2011, but not this badly, reports the BBC . Japan's gross domestic product shrunk 2.3% in the last three months of the year, much worse than the 1.4% economists were predicting, due to the yen...

And the Photo of the Year Is...

Samuel Aranda's photo from Yemen protests wins World Press Photo of the Year

(Newser) - A photo of a veiled woman comforting an injured man following a protest in Yemen has won the World Press Photo of the Year for 2011. The photo, taken by Spanish photographer Samuel Aranda for the New York Times, "shows a poignant, compassionate moment, the human consequence of an...

Japan Reports 1st Trade Deficit in 30 Years

And that could mean trouble for its national debt

(Newser) - Japan reported its first trade deficit since 1980 today, a $32 billion shortfall caused in part by the tsunami that struck the country, and in part by the strengthening yen. And while the tsunami may have been a freak occurrence, experts tell the AP that the deficit isn't. "...

Tourism Spikes Worldwide
 Tourism Spikes Worldwide 
Jan 16, 2012 6:59 PM CST

Tourism Spikes Worldwide

Europe sees boost as Middle East, North Africa lose travelers

(Newser) - The economic crisis, Japanese disasters, and the Arab Spring couldn't stop tourists from globetrotting last year, AFP reports. European tourism surged the most—6% higher than in 2010—helping to fuel an international rise of 4.4% that clocked 980 million travelers, according to a UN report. But tourists...

Japan to Shut Nuke Plants at 40 Years

Public concerns force stiffening of safety regulations

(Newser) - Nuclear reactors in Japan will be retired after 40 years of use, as part of the government's efforts to step up nuclear safety in the aftermath of the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant disaster last March, reports the AP . There are 54 reactors in Japan, 18 of which will be 40...

7.0 Quake Shakes Tokyo
 7.0 Quake Shakes Tokyo 
Jan 1, 2012 9:28 AM CST

7.0 Quake Shakes Tokyo

But no injuries, damage reported

(Newser) - A 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck under the sea south of Japan today, shaking buildings in the capital but causing no apparent damage or tsunami. The quake struck near the uninhabited island of Torishima in the Pacific Ocean, about 370 miles south of Tokyo, and its epicenter was about 230 miles...

Japan: 40 Years to Fully Shut Down Fukushima

Removing nuclear fuel will require tech not yet invented

(Newser) - The predictions are getting worse: Japanese officials today said that it could take as many as 40 years to decommission the Fukushima nuclear plant, upping the previous estimate of 30 years. According to the detailed roadmap, TEPCO intends to spend the next two years clearing the spent fuel rods out...

Fukushima Plant Is Stable: Japan

Experts say it will still take decades to close the site safely

(Newser) - Japan's prime minister said today that the country's tsunami-damaged nuclear plant has achieved a stable state of "cold shutdown," a crucial step toward the eventual lifting of evacuation orders and closing of the plant. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's announcement was intended to reassure the nation...

Japan Uses Disaster Budget to Fund Whaling Hunt

Official defends the controversial move

(Newser) - Of Japan's $230 billion in supplementary budgets meant for tsunami reconstruction, $29 million will be used for … a whaling hunt. An official confirmed the move today, and simultaneously defended it, noting that some whaling towns were hit badly by the March 11 tsunami, and the funding will help...

2011, as Told in 18 Items
 2011, as Told in 18 Items 
Dec 4, 2011 12:59 PM CST

2011, as Told in 18 Items

From Steve Jobs' turtleneck to Kate Middleton cash

(Newser) - If the BBC can summarize all of history in 100 objects, then Vanity Fair can do a year in 18. The magazine offers a collection of iconic objects—some real, some fictional—as a time capsule of sorts for 2011. Among the highlights:
  • The Hello Kitty cat holding a “
...

Radiation from Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi Plant Traveled Globe: Report
 Fukushima 
 Radiation 
 Traveled 
 the Globe 
report finds
Nov 17, 2011 10:26 AM CST

Fukushima Radiation Traveled the Globe

Most landed in sea: report

(Newser) - Some 80% of the radiation from Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi plant ended up in the sea, where it’s now spread worldwide, a report finds. Fortunately, data suggests “ocean pollution resulting from the accident was well below levels affecting humans,” a researcher tells AFP . Radiation—some of which...

'Dangerous' Nuke Plant Opens Its Doors

Journalists witness 'twisted metal, crumpled trucks'

(Newser) - Reporters toured the Fukushima nuclear plant yesterday, looking out a bus window at debris that still littered the site some 8 months after a tsunami and earthquake devastated Japan, the Guardian reports. One reporter described "twisted metal, crumpled trucks, large water tanks that have been dented and bent,"...

New Trouble for Fukushima Reactor

Officials detect radioactive xenon, but reactor is stable

(Newser) - A potential new setback for Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant: Utility officials have detected radioactive xenon particles inside the No. 2 reactor, suggesting unexpected nuclear fission may have taken place. Boric acid, which can counteract nuclear fission, was injected as a precaution, but Tokyo Electric Power says that...

Experts: 30 Years Until Fukushima Can Be Closed

Process will be time-consuming and costly

(Newser) - Officials say Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant is relatively stable, but a government panel still believes it will be at least 30 years before it can be safely decommissioned and closed. The panel of experts, named by Japan’s Atomic Energy Commission, noted that it took a decade...

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