The earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan have raised new concerns about the risk of another nuclear reactor disaster. Despite reports by the New York Times that “officials said radiation leaks from the plant were receding and that a major meltdown was not imminent,” scientists from organizations such as the Union of Concerned Scientists and Beyond Nuclear are working to access the risk of a major disaster. They have reported “there are indications that there has been some fuel melting, and there are reports that some radioactive cesium has been detected.” Their fact sheet is being updated regularly.” Here is video of the explosion.

The fact sheet also suggested to me, anyway, that officials are struggling not to take action that will permanently disable the reactor, although the Concerned Scientist folks don’t think that is a bad idea at all.  News reports suggest the situation is “spiraling out of control.”