Researchers in Japan published a new study on the impact of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident to the pale grass blue butterfly. (Fig. 1)

 Post-Fukushima, the Japan had a large protest with more than 100,000 anti-nuclear protesters marching in Tokyo yesterday as the government seeks to balance energy demands and impacts on the economy.

The Official Report of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission is now available in English.

There is a recent report by R. Alvarez, former Policy Adviser to the Secretary of Energy, under the Clinton administration which claims that an earthquake at Fukushima Unit 4 could cause a widespread disaster by the release of Cs-137 from the spent nuclear fuel stored in the cooling pond. Let’s examine some of the information and see if this has any factual or technical basis.

The last part of the interim report from the Investigation Committee on the Accidents at Fukushima Nuclear Power Stations of Tokyo Electric Power Company, appointed by the Japanese government, deals with the oversight of the country’s two nuclear regulatory bodies of the power plants and finds it lacking. The committee describes the characteristics it would like to see in a stronger regulator.

In the first few hours of 2012, here are Nuclear Diner’s choices for the top ten nuclear stories of 2011. Of course the biggest is that Nuclear Diner began operation in October, and we’re very grateful to those who have joined us so far. We’re hoping for a good 2012 and wish the same to all our readers and members!

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) is on the brink of nationalization. The official reason is that the firm may not be able to handle the massive compensation payments it owes to victims. Unofficially, the firm has such long-standing ties to anti-social forces.

Of all the things that went wrong with the reactors, the Committee singles out operator actions on the isolation condensers on Unit 1 and water injection on Unit 3. The explanations are unclear, lacking context and perhaps translated badly. As a result, we’ll have to wait until the full interim report is translated or the final report is available to understand the Committee’s concerns about reactor operation.

At least half of the interim report from the Investigation Committee on the Accidents at Fukushima Nuclear Power Stations of Tokyo Electric Power Company, appointed by the Japanese government, concerns communications within the government, between the government and Tepco, and to the Japanese people and other nations.

The Investigation Committee on the Accidents at Fukushima Nuclear Power Stations of Tokyo Electric Power Company, appointed by the Japanese government, has issued an interim report.

Fukushima reflections, Putin's new year worries, Iran's posturing, North Korea and more

If there's a bad reactor accident near you, or even a radiological or nuclear weapon attack, you might not want to hop in the car and get out. It might be better to stay home. And the detection of the radiological danger may well be by an organization related to nuclear weapons, the CTBTO.

Tepco, the operator of the Fukushima plant, has gotten a lot of things wrong. But they made good on their pledge to have the reactors in cold shutdown by the end of the year. Today Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced that the reactors had reached that State, and the International Atomic Energy Agency welcomed the news.

Several experts inside and outside Japan told The Associated Press that cancers caused by the radiation may be too few to show up in large population studies, like the long-term survey just getting under way in Fukushima.

That could mean thousands of cancers under the radar in a study of millions of people, or it could be virtually none.

While nations may pause in their pursuit of nuclear power, demand for new plants would likely expand in the long term.