Robot probe detects high radiation at No.3 reactor

The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has detected high levels of radiation in the basement of the No. 3 reactor, with a maximum dose of 360 millisieverts per hour. Tokyo Electric Power Company sent in a robot on Wednesday to the room where the suppression chamber is located. It was the first robot to probe this area of the plant. TEPCO released video taken inside. They show that a door on the southwestern side is broken. There is no other apparent damage or sign of water leakage. But high levels of radiation were detected. Readings exceeded 100 millisieverts per hour in a number of locations. Average levels were higher than those in the No.2 reactor. Engineers lost control of the remote-controlled robot after around 3 hours of operation. They say there are problems with the connecting cable and they've been unable to regain control. TEPCO officials say they have no option but to leave the robot where it is for the time being. This may pose a problem to the utility's efforts to decommission the reactor. The operators are in a hurry to identify and repair damage to the reactor's suppression chamber and containment vessel. They want to pump in water in order to remove the melted fuel lying at the bottom.

Ohi nuclear plant to go back line on Sunday

One of the reactors at the Ohi nuclear power plant in central Japan on Sunday will go back online. It will be the first to do so since reactors went offline due to safety concerns after the Fukushima accident last year. All nuclear reactors in Japan are now offline. New safety regulations were called for after the accident in March at the Fukushima plant. The government says the regulations are now just being met. Operator Kansai Electric Power Company has been making preparations for the restart since the government decided on June 16th to resume the No.3 and No.4 reactors at the plant in Fukui Prefecture. The company plans to start lifting control rods in the No.3 reactor at 9:00 PM in the presence of senior vice industry minister Seishu Makino and Ohi Town Mayor Shinobu Tokioka. The reactor is expected to reach criticality, starting a self-sustaining chain reaction, early on Monday. The utility says the reactor will start generating power on Wednesday, and begin operating at full capacity 4 days later. The facility was shut down about 15 months ago. The operator says it plans to restart the No.4 reactor as early as July 17th for full-capacity operations by the 24th. The Ohi plant has been under strict around-the-clock monitoring since June 16th. Nine minor problems have been reported since then, including an interruption in the power grid monitoring signal.

Largest Japanese-animation expo in US opens

An exposition of Japanese animation films and video games is being held in Los Angeles. The annual Anime Expo opened at Los Angeles Convention Center, California, on Friday. The US-based Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation organized the 4-day event for films and video games. The event is expected to draw 130,000 visitors. The expo features the latest versions of video games based on popular Japanese animation films. In some booths, fans were excited at being able to use online services to watch on their Smartphone handsets animation films aired in Japan less than an hour earlier. The films are shown with English subtitles. Drinks and snacks are available at a cafe that resembles the popular "maid cafes" in Japan's Akihabara electric town. In the Tokyo cafes, waitresses dressed as maids treat customers like masters or mistresses in high-status people's homes of several generations ago. Many fans also dressed themselves as their favorite animation character in what is known as cosplay. An American girl said she enjoyed meeting other cosplayers. She said the art of animation is very interesting and inspiring. A charity auction will be held for donations to the disaster-hit Tohoku region of Japan and other places around the world.