Table of Contents
Guide
Nuclear Meltdowns
Kirsten W. Larson
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Before & After Reading Activities | Level: UWord Count: 2,767 words 100th word: shore |
Before Reading:
Building Academic Vocabulary and Background Knowledge
Before reading a book, it is important to tap into what your child or students already know about the topic. This will help them develop their vocabulary, increase their reading comprehension, and make connections across the curriculum.
Look at the cover of the book. What will this book be about?
What do you already know about the topic?
Lets study the Table of Contents. What will you learn about in the books chapters?
What would you like to learn about this topic? Do you think you might learn about it from this book? Why or why not?
Use a reading journal to write about your knowledge of this topic. Record what you already know about the topic and what you hope to learn about the topic.
Read the book.
In your reading journal, record what you learned about the topic and your response to the book.
After reading the book complete the activities below.
Content Area Vocabulary
Read the list. What do these words mean?
atoms
cores
electrons
evacuate
generators
meltdown
neutrons
nuclear energy
nucleus
protons
radiation
radioactive
tsunami
turbine
uranium
After Reading:
Comprehension and Extension Activity
After reading the book, work on the following questions with your child or students in order to check their level of reading comprehension and content mastery.
What is the purpose of the cooling tower? (Summarize)
Why is nuclear power a hot-button issue? (Infer)
What are some ways to prepare your community for a nuclear meltdown? (Text to self connection)
What percentage of electricity in the US is produced by nuclear power plants? (Summarize)
Where do you think power plants should be built? (Asking questions)
Extension Activity
Nuclear fission is a chain reaction, which is like a domino effect of colliding atoms. To demonstrate the chain reaction of nuclear fission, gather dominoes and a wood block or similar object. Set up a track of dominoes by standing them up and placing them close together so that each will hit the next. Tip the first domino into the second. What happened? How is this like nuclear fission? What would happen if you had an endless supply of dominoes? Now set up the track of dominoes again but place the block in between two dominoes. Tip the first domino into the second. What was different? Raise the block so that the resting domino falls into the next. What does that block represent? Why is it important to have a control rod in a nuclear reactor?
Mammoth Meltdown!
On March 11, 2011, Japanese nuclear worker Takashi Sato wrote reports on his computer. It was just another day at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant about 160 miles (267 kilometers) northeast of Tokyo. The skies were clear. The sun shone. But at 2:46 p.m. everything changed.
An enormous earthquake rattled Japan. Centered 80 miles (129 kilometers) offshore in the Pacific, the Tohoku Earthquake measured 9.0 on the Richter Scale. It shook buildings for a full five minutes, sending workers ducking for cover.
That colossal quake was just the beginning. Forty-five minutes later, a wall of water struck the shore, engulfing the nuclear plant. It was a .
Japan sits in an area known as the Ring of Fire. This part of the Pacific Ocean experiences frequent volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis. The Tohoku Earthquake was one of many devastating earthquakes that have affected the country.
After the initial earthquake, workers rushing from buildings saw pipes bursting. Some pipes carried water to cool three nuclear reactors. The power went out, plunging the entire plant into darkness. Without power, pumps couldnt circulate cool water through the reactor. When temperatures climb high enough, the fuel rods melt. This is a nuclear meltdown. During a meltdown, the fuel may melt through the floor and dump stay hot.
A powerful explosion ripped the roof off reactor Number 1 at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant. The meltdown damaged four of the six reactors at the plant beyond repair.
Fast Fact
At Fukushima, temperatures reached 4,800 degrees Fahrenheit (2,649 Celsius).
Fortunately, the power plants backup power system came on after the earthquake. Diesel-fuel-powered switched on to make electricity and keep the cooling pumps operating. Unfortunately, those backup generators were located in the plants basement. When the tsunami waves struck, they ruined the generators.
Diesel generators use diesel fuela form of gasolineto create electricity. Aside from these bus-sized generators, nuclear power plants in the United States also have portable steam generators.
The earthquake and tsunami killed almost 16,000 people and injured another 5,000. The nuclear meltdown of three reactors at the plant lasted for more than a week. During that time, the Japanese government ordered people living within 12 miles (19 kilometers) of the plant to leave their homes as explosions at the plant spewed radioactive material into the sky. More than 80,000 people left, not returning home for months. Some still have not been able to return.
The nuclear meltdown was not the only disaster Japan faced after the massive earthquake. The tsunami washed away many towns and ports in a 216 square mile (560 square kilometer) area. It destroyed more than a million buildings.
The former Soviet Union built nuclear-powered submarines like this one in the 1970s. Today, the United States Navy has 74 nuclear-powered submarines.
Today, is all around us. In the United States, nuclear power plants generate 20 percent of the countrys electricity. Nuclear power also is used to diagnose and treat cancer and power submarines and spacecraft. How do we make sure nuclear power stays safe? And how can we protect ourselves when meltdowns happen?