Science Media Centre

An explosion at a French nuclear reactor has killed one person and injured others, but experts say there is no need for concern regarding radiation leakage. The explosion occurred at the Marcoule nuclear site, in a part of the facility used to melt down metals. No increases in radiation levels have been detected. More information can [...]

The suggestion from a WHO task-force that cellphone exposure is “possibly carcinogenic”  has generated wide spread media buzz over the potential risks of mobile devices. At 4am on Wednesday (NZ time) the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a subsidiary of the World Health Organization, released a monograph classifying exposure to mobile phones as [...]

On Tuesday Japan upgraded the incident level for the Fukushima nuclear power plant from 5 to 7 on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES), a classification reserved for the most severe nuclear crises. The level 7 classification has only been used once previously – for the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. What does the the [...]

Efforts to control the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima Nuclear powerplant in Japan have led to the release of radioactive steam into the atmosphere. Raised levels of the radioactive isotope iodine-131 have now been recorded at monitoring sites in the UK, with stations in Glasglow and Oxfordshire reporting slightly increased amounts of the isotope being [...]

Japanese officials confirmed overnight that samples of Tokyo tap water showed elevated radiation levels more than twice the recommended limit for infants. Concerns remain about contamination of food grown in the region around the Fukushima nuclear plant. Our colleagues at the UK Science Media Centre gathered the comments below on the latest situation from UK-based [...]

SMCJ: Our colleagues at the Science Media Centre of Japan have been gathering comments from Japanese scientists on numerous aspects of the nuclear situation at the Fukushima power plant. Professor Shunichi Yamashita, of the Gaduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University and President of the Japan Thyroid Association has recently been requested by the Fukushima [...]

Expert reaction to measurements of radioactivity in food near Fukushima The quotes below were gathered by our colleagues at the UK Science Media Centre. Feel free to use them in your coverage. Prof Steve Jones, independent nuclear and environmental consultant, said: [In response to figures obtained by the Associated Press on Saturday from the Japanese [...]

Media coverage and commentary on the crisis in Japan’s Fukeshima Daiichi nuclear plant has focused intensely on possible acute effects from radiation exposure. In response, a local expert has contacted the Science Media Centre with the following comments on a topic he thinks is more relevant for people outside the ailing nuclear plant’s evacuation perimeter, including Kiwis [...]

This is a backgrounder preared by the Science Media Centre of Canada in response to the unfolding situation at the Fukushima plant in Japan. We hope it will be useful when dealing with some of the technicalities of radiation. Because the situation continues to unfold, we will update the backgrounder periodically if needed. How do [...]

AusSMC: As the situation unfolds following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, experts look at the health effects of exposure to radiation. The Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) have added more information to their website. See below for an explanation of the Sievert unit measure used to quantitatively assess the biological effects [...]