What Will Happen To The Fukushima Reactors?

It's hard for me to understand what is going on with the Fukushima Nuclear Reactors.  Are they in full melt down?  Will they continue to melt all the way down to the center of the Earth as described by the China Syndrome?

If some or all of the reactors are in full melt down and reach the center of the Earth, what happens?  Does the material just burn up?  Could it explode?  Will it cause earthquakes or volcanic eruptions?  Could a fission or fusion explosion occur?

I ask because I have no idea.  Obviously I understand you can't believe everything you read on the internet and there are plenty of conspiracy theory hucksters.  But here are also a lot of sources that are reputable that are, well, very concerned to put it mildly.  Turns out TEPCO hasn't exactly been truthful about the situation.

So if anyone has any idea of what could happen if these reactors melt down to the Earth's Core do leave me a comment.  I just have no idea but I have to say it does frighten me.  I personally could see it triggering Earthquakes and Volcanic activity.

What happens when there is a hole burned straight down to the center of the Earth?  Will lava spew out?

Some Reading:

Architect of Reactor 3 warns of massive hydrovolcanic explosion

Study Shows Worse Picture of Meltdown in Japan

Fukushima China Syndrome

Japan PM declares Fukushima Daiichi stable, but many don't believe him

Update:  In reading through some information it seems what may happen is the reactor cores will hit a pocket of ground water or more likely, sea water, and explode.  Not Good.

Fits and Starts

I have not blogged here in a long time.  I mostly blog at pissedonpolitics.com

I am thinking about getting back into Revolutionary Paradigm as time keeps moving forward.  Initially I thought Science and Technology would propel us forward but it seemed Politics was holding us back.  So I focused on Politics.

Now I am back to my original conclusion - the only way we will survive is through Science, Technology, and Invention.  If we don't come up with some new ideas quick we'll surely be doomed.  If climate change doesn't get us over population will.  And if that doesn't kill us off an asteroid impact will eventually.

If humanity is to survive for the long term (hundreds of thousands of years) we will need to pull our collective heads out of our asses very soon.

Russia Takes Aim At Asteroid Apophis

If you're like me and follow science and technology then chances are you have heard about Russia planning to launch spacecraft to Asteroid Apophis.  Apophis is one of may Near Earth Objects, or NEO's, and has been deemed an "earth killer" due to its size.

It is scheduled to make a close pass around earth in 2029.  It's been determined it won't hit Earth at this time but it is getting pretty darn close - closer than the communications satellites we have in orbit.  People much smarter than me and better at math have determined it won't hit Earth in 2029.

I can only hope they are taking into account gravitational effects from the Earth, Sun, and Moon and have figured those into their calculations.  I can only hope they are considering other objects in Apophis' path that could alter its course or the remote possibilities it will collide with other NEO's or comets.

There is however something that has been called a "keyhole" that if Apophis passes through then the odds it will hit Earth next time around in 2036 increase dramatically.  Some have speculated if it hits this keyhole or window in 2029 then it will hit Earth.  I presume the speculations are based on someone's calculations.

According to NASA if Apophis does not hit this window then the odds it will hit Earth in 2036 are 1 in 250,000.

It's not clear yet if NASA and Russia are going to work together on this.  So far NASA seems to be balking at Russia's plan to save the Earth from this potential asteroid collision.

I have a few other concerns which I can only presume and hope people much smarter and better at math than me are taking into consideration.  For one, what if altering Apophis' orbit actually makes things worse?  What if in the process other NEO orbits are altered sending even more asteroids hurling toward Earth?

The other minor concern I have which I admit borders on the conspiracy theory but let's just suppose for a moment Russia does get spacecraft to Apophis capable of either destroying it or altering its course.  They could in theory then perhaps hold the Earth to hostage demands like asking for all the world's oil or else...Perhaps asking for all the gold or $50 Trillion dollars.  Who knows?  Maybe they could even hurl the asteroid in such a way that it hits North America.

As far fetched as it may sound I do hope NASA works with Russia.  All joking aside this is a serious issue.  And really, if an asteroid was going to hit Earth, would they tell us?  Maybe Russia knows something we don't?

Still my hunch is that it's not the asteroid you see that gets ya...it's the asteroid you don't see...

The Register - Russia plans asteroid-defence space mission to Apophis - Probably not planning to use it as weapon

BBC - Russia 'plans to stop asteroid'

Green Algae Cars

Recently it was reported that a company called OriginOil had developed a way to extract the oil from green algae without killing the algae. This could lead to renewable sources of oil fueled by sunlight.

I began thinking if some day in the future we could have a car with an on board tank of green algae where the oil was extracted from the green algae in real time. The oil was then processed into fuel with on board microrefineries. While parked the fuel tank could be filled with oil extracted from the growing green algae. If efficient enough it could even be done as the car is driving to provide fuel as you go.

Basically it would be an unlimited fuel supply. While technology does not exist yet to make this a realty I think it could be possible some time in the future.

OriginOil Announces Breakthrough Process for Live Algae Oil Extraction

Turning Algae Into Energy