these pipes are not zirconium but it s sort of like the same idea of rusting. it is not rusting, it is ox di says. when something gets rusty, it starts to degrade and breaks down. if the bottom of your car looks like this, like mine does right now, you start to worry about whether you have to replace it, whether you need framework done, or whether you just need a new car. rust. zirconium doesn t rust but it does oxidize when it is exposed to air so the combination of the heat and the oxidization, it is like super fast rusting on steroids. between that, the metal starts to break an and allows the our rain to get exposed and it s so hot it begins to melt. it s true for spent fuel rods.
a large spike in radio activity after the fire in number 4. what that means is the force of that explosion or smoke from the fire or both carried aloft radioactive particles being released by the damaged spent fuel rods. uranium pellets in the big now probably damaged metal tubes. this is not a nuclear explosion. there are not nuclear chain reactions going on here, but this is a means by which radioactivity is being released into the atmosphere, and the question is whether or not those fuel rods, even if already damaged, whether they can be resubmerged. japanese officials floated the idea of helicopters dropping water on them today. they raised the idea of fire trucks or hoses being used to get water on them. we will turn to expert help trying to understand what the best hopes are for getting the situation under control. joining us now, nuclear physicist, frank von hippel.
if those tubes are exposed to the air, the metal oxidizes and starts to breakdown. it is like the idea of rusting, it is not rusting, it is oxidi seepation. if the bottom of your car looks like this, like mine does, you worry about whether you have to replace it, whether you need framework done, or whether you need a new car. rust. sir cone yum doesn t rust but it does objection diez when exposed to air. the combination of heat and the objection did iization, it is like super fast rusting. exposing those fuel rods to the air causes that. it is like super fast rusting on steroids and that s trouble.
particles being released by those damaged spent fuel rods. by those uranium pellets in the big now probably damaged metal tubes. this is not a nuclear explosion. there are not nuclear chain reactions going on here, but this is a means by which radioactivity is being released into the atmosphere, and the question is whether or not those fuel rods, even if they re already damaged, whether they can be resubmerged. japanese officials floated the idea of helicopters dropping water on them today. they raised the idea of fire trucks or fire hoses being used to get water on them. we re now going to turn to some expert help in trying to understand what the best hopes are for getting the situation under control. joining us now is nuclear physicist, frank von hippel. he is the co-founder of a program at princeton. mr. von hippel, thanks for being here. my pleasure. tell me what i got wrong in the explanation. it was terrific. i don t thing the one thing i
handling it as well as they could. there s a lot of similarities here to three mile island, you know, underestimating the magnitude of the incident on the first day, for instance. that s a dead ringer for what happened at three mile island. waiting for an evacuation for several days, that s a dead ringer for what happened at three mile island. the difference is that governor thornburgh at three mile island did tell pregnant women and young children to evacuate, and i believe that the japanese should do that out beyond this 20 kilometer or 12-mile zone. i think the japanese should extend that warning for pregnant women and for children out to at least the 30-kilometer zone. being in your house with a developing fetus, for instance, is not a good idea because your cells are growing very fast, and it s fast-growing cells that are more susceptible to radiation. so if i were the authorities there, i would suggest that