Japan hit by powerful earthquake

[Kaylia]

whoa whoa whoa, is it 30 feet or 30 meters? Because that's a huge difference in height.

The reporter said 30 meters but it does feel like an exageration. It was probably feet.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12731631


[edit]
But keep in mind there was some area between mountain where the water could have went really high. That region had a bunch of small inlet.

[Kaylia]

http://www.examiner.com/extreme-weat...sunami-footage



JFC

His story was interesting to read (and watch)

[aduidarnenye]

Just a thought, because I dunno, but can a tsunami topple aircraft carriers? The US ones that Obama said that were heading there. But if there was to be more risks of tsunamis how are they getting around this?

Naval ships like aircraft carriers regularly sail through waves of 40 to 50 feet, but out in the middle of the ocean. They simply turn the boat into the wave, climbing it, so the narrowest end is hit first (which stops the boat from rolling over). The bigger the ship, the less likely you'll feel the waves. I was on the USS Wasp last year for a tour and the sailors told me that even though it's a huge aircraft carrier that when the ocean really gets going up to 50 feet they start feeling the ship rolling.

When a tsunami warning is made as many boats and ships as possible high tail it away from the shore. The further away from the shore, where the water levels will be fluctuating like mad, the safer the boats will be. Out to sea the wave doesn't have a crest, it's just a big lump of water, and the boats can get past it. Next to the shore the water gets suck down into the tsunami, leaving the boats unable to move (which makes them unable to navigate the wave properly when it hits). It looked to me that most, if not all, of the boats you saw bobbing along in the tsunami were unmanned.

A big aircraft carrier won't come close to shore anyway. They'll send landing craft in. So they'll be well placed to move further out if there is a problem.

[Kaylia]

Would you even realize there was a tsunami wave? The water level would go up and down a couple of feet and that's it. There is no normal "wave".



Water level fluctuation is probably not the worst thing for boat close to the shore, it's the currents created by the wave that make them uncontrollable.

[wop]

One of my friend just posted this on Facebook.

divine punishment? "utilize" this tsunami to wash off our greed?

Apparently said by Tokyo's infamous major.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...obop/Kenji.jpg

Glad his family is ok and is doing all they could to help out. (His family owns a private hospital in the region)



Anyone have an official quote by that major?

[wop]

This is interesting.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/ed...ting-in-japan/

The landscape of parts of Japan looks like the aftermath of World War Two; no industrialised country since then has suffered such a death toll. The one tiny, tiny consolation is the extent to which it shows how humanity can rally round in times of adversity, with heroic British rescue teams joining colleagues from the US and elsewhere to fly out.
And solidarity seems especially strong in Japan itself. Perhaps even more impressive than Japan’s technological power is its social strength, with supermarkets cutting prices and vending machine owners giving out free drinks as people work together to survive. Most noticeably of all, there has been no looting, and I’m not the only one curious about this.
This is quite unusual among human cultures, and it’s unlikely it would be the case in Britain. During the 2007 floods in the West Country abandoned cars were broken into and free packs of bottled water were stolen. There was looting in Chile after the earthquake last year – so much so that troops were sent in; in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina saw looting on a shocking scale.
Why do some cultures react to disaster by reverting to everyone for himself, but others – especially the Japanese – display altruism even in adversity?

I was at my japanese haidresser yesterday, and she said the supermarkets around her hometown are empty, but NO LOOTING. Although there's panic buying, people are still civilised.
If it's in any other part of the word.... lol

[Sumiko]

Are the gases being released by the reactors that exploded dangerous? I know my mom's freaking out that it might reach Taiwan/Cali but I keep hearing alternating reports saying that they're not, saying that they are... etc.

[aduidarnenye]

Would you even realize there was a tsunami wave? The water level would go up and down a couple of feet and that's it. There is no normal "wave".

Water level fluctuation is probably not the worst thing for boat close to the shore, it's the currents created by the wave that make them uncontrollable.

No, I think you probably wouldn't notice if you were at sea on a boat that went over a tsunami. What I meant by the water dropping was that the boats wouldn't be able to navigate to a safe spot if they waited too long before attempting to deal with the oncoming wave.

This is interesting.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/ed...ting-in-japan/

I was at my japanese haidresser yesterday, and she said the supermarkets around her hometown are empty, but NO LOOTING. Although there's panic buying, people are still civilised.
If it's in any other part of the word.... lol

I noticed this on the news last night. Everyone standing in nice calm lines at the stores, waiting their turn. Something like this happened in North America and there would be mass looting.

My husband pointed out that when FF11 released the NPC fellowship quest the JPs all stood in line for the BCNM until the NAs logged on and started cutting in like mad. Something inherent to Japanese culture.

I notice when I watch the news stories of the people looking for family and friends they're constantly bowing to each other and being extremely polite.

[Osede]

One of my friend just posted this on Facebook.

Apparently said by Tokyo's infamous major.

Anyone have an official quote by that major?

Ishihara is an asshole anyway. Those are the words what he exactly said in the news conference.

http://www.asahi.com/national/update...103140356.html

[Olo401]

Are the gases being released by the reactors that exploded dangerous? I know my mom's freaking out that it might reach Taiwan/Cali but I keep hearing alternating reports saying that they're not, saying that they are... etc.

They can be - the gas contains radioactive iodine and cesium which can be dangerous, but the quantities are small and you can counteract the iodine's radiation easily. Those gases won't reach very far at all before they cool & fall into the ocean.

[Psion]

Are the gases being released by the reactors that exploded dangerous? I know my mom's freaking out that it might reach Taiwan/Cali but I keep hearing alternating reports saying that they're not, saying that they are... etc.

From what I hear, if you were directly in the plume somehow you might want to stop smoking to bring your death risk back to normal. Otherwise, not really, though perhaps nicotine patches might need to be distributed to local marine life to help reduce their risk.

[Kaylia]

Are the gases being released by the reactors that exploded dangerous? I know my mom's freaking out that it might reach Taiwan/Cali but I keep hearing alternating reports saying that they're not, saying that they are... etc.

Yes very. Close your window, get food supply and lock yourself in the basement. Nuclear winter is otw.


I'm not a nuclear expert, but considering the distance and the multiples statement about weak radioactive emission, I would say that most radioactive material (if not all) would be in the ocean or so spread out it doesnt matter by the time it reaches california.

My husband pointed out that when FF11 released the NPC fellowship quest the JPs all stood in line for the BCNM until the NAs logged on and started cutting in like mad. Something inherent to Japanese culture.

I wish they would have made a line at Fafnir.

[wop]

1507: Nuclear fuel rods have been exposed again at the Fukushima plant,

1 minute ago.

[The Stig]

Aside from some of the tear jerker stories, it is a surprising change to see a disaster on TV, but civilisation intact. Usually if it's anywhere else there'd be people fighting for aid and screaming/crying none stop. But with the nuclear problem looming overhead I think that's slightly less of a focus.

Who will be the first celebrity to get there?

[Kurokikaze]

http://www.kgmi.com/pages/9392952.ph...tentId=7812944

Them after they're safe. Glad thats news worthy.

Anyone else notice how it took all this chaos to keep Sheen out of the news? lol

[archibaldcrane]

Anyone else notice how it took all this chaos to keep Sheen out of the news? lol

It's definitely taking the wind out of the Wisconsin protest coverage's sails too.

[Pikarya]

http://pics.kuvaton.com/kuvei/japan_streetview.jpg

[Kaylia]

Has to be a troll lol.

[thetruepandagod]

This is interesting.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/ed...ting-in-japan/

I was at my japanese haidresser yesterday, and she said the supermarkets around her hometown are empty, but NO LOOTING. Although there's panic buying, people are still civilised.
If it's in any other part of the word.... lol

Back when my mom used to work for PAN AM airlines in the 80's they had a japanese flight with turbulence and the oxygen masks fell out for the passengers to use all the japanese passengers held it away from their face as demonstrated by the stewardess you always see at the beginning of the flight. They had to be told repeatedly that they had to actually put it on their faces since they didn't understand they weren't supposed to copy the stewardess example exactly. The japanese culture is very lead and follow.

This is what they looked like on the flight.

It's definitely taking the wind out of the Wisconsin protest coverage's sails too.

By the time japan gets settled ghadafi will have his country back and no one will have even noticed.

[archibaldcrane]

Yeah, Libya is basically in full-scale civil war, and I swear Egypt got 10 times the coverage.