Comparing Chernobyl and Fukushima Disaster

Just recently Japan has raised the alert level of its nuclear dilemma from five to the maximum level of seven making the horrible nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi similar to the one in Chernobyl, Ukraine in 1986.

In the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) event scale, the 1986 nuclear accident in Chernobyl was the only nuclear accident given a level seven. It was described as a nuclear event that released radioactive material in a widespread area that has affected a major population's health and not to mention severe effect on the environment. The nuclear disaster in Japan is slowly beginning to show signs like the event in Ukraine making it to the level seven classifications in nuclear disaster.

Experts are now studying the two nuclear disasters and comparing each with the other. This comparison is essential in the research for more appropriate safety measures imposed in nuclear power plants and the most effective safety regulations that must be set to prevent another disaster from happening in the future.

The main difference of the two nuclear disasters was the cause of their explosions. At the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, a massive explosion destroyed a nuclear reactor releasing a powerful radioactive cloud. Fukushima Daiichi on the other hand had severe damage to its reactor's cooling system due to a magnitude 8.9 earthquake. Both had explosions that ultimately destroyed the entire plant along with massive and unstoppable fire.

Another difference of the two nuclear disasters was the amount of radioactive material released to the atmosphere. It was estimated that the Chernobyl incident has released over 1.9 EBq totals of high-concern isotopes, contaminating large areas of the European continent. Fukushima has 0.6 EBq total of high-concern isotope released in the first 3 to 4 weeks of the accident and will likely continue to rise for many more weeks to come. The Fukushima disaster is also the biggest nuclear disaster to pollute the oceans with at least 10,000 metric tons (2,000,000 gallons) of radioactive waste released and the number is still rising.

The effect of both nuclear disasters is relatively widespread with an evacuation radius of 30 kilometers for the Chernobyl incident with about 115,000 people evacuated. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster has evacuated residents to a radius of 20 km to 45 km with over 85,000 evacuated and the number is still rising.

Both nuclear disasters have claimed hundreds of lives and have caused severe damage to property and unbelievable radioactive effects to resident's health and also tremendous effects to the environment. Chernobyl is now a creepy, ghost town found in Northern Ukraine. No one lives there anymore except for a lone solitary guard to keep watch. All is left are remnants of the once lively place, a classroom, a hospital ward and a children's playground. If you visit Chernobyl in Kiev Oblast you will feel the haunted feeling of waste and fear. This will likely happen to Fukushima, and this is the ultimate similarity that will definitely leave a mark in the memories of residents and the entire nation of Japan.