All things about the media, marketing, business, Japan and other musings by Mike in Tokyo Rogers.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Current Radiation Levels in Shinjuku, Tokyo and Tsukuba (75 km. north of Tokyo)
都内の環境放射線量調査1日単位の測定結果はここです:
http://ftp.jaist.ac.jp/pub/emergency/monitoring.tokyo-eiken.go.jp/monitoring/past_data.html
Click here for regular up-to-the-hour updated information: http://113.35.73.180/report/report_table.do
Next, updated daily and hourly from the Advanced Industrial Science and Technology Unit in Tsukuba (Tsukuba is between Tokyo and the accident site at Fukushima. It is about 75 kilometers north of Tokyo, and 150 kilometers south of Fukushima). Is an updated hourly summary of radiation measured in microSv/hour. You can view the daily and hourly radiation level updates here: http://www.aist.go.jp/taisaku/ja/measurement/index.html
Here is an chart from the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology's National Metrology Institute of Japan webpage. It shows what typical radiation levels (measured in microSv) are in our daily lives:
At the bottom left, you see the mark of 190. That's the amount of radiation you get on a one-way flight from Tokyo to New York. Above that, you see the number 2400. That is the amount of radiation that a person gets annually from nature. At the top left is the number 10000. That is annual radiation amount a person who lives in Karapari City in Brazil gets. At the top right, you see 6900, that's the amount of radiation you get from a CT scan. Bottom right? That's 50, the amount a person receives from one X-ray.
As you can see, there is absolutely no radiation risk in Tsukuba and Tsukuba is much closer to the accident site than is Tokyo. One gets a much bigger dose of radiation flying from Narita to New York. In fact, at 0.05 microSv per hour, you would have to be standing outside in the elements everyday for nearly 40 days straight to equal the amount of radiation you'd receive on just that single one-way flight from Tokyo to New York.
Thanks to Mark!
8 comments:
Comments must be succinct & relevant to the story. Comments are checked frequently and abusive, rude or profane comments will be deleted. I’m just one of many bloggers who answer questions online and sometimes for the press. I usually handle questions about Japan, marketing or the economy, so in those areas I’m more likely to make sense and less likely to say something really stupid. If I post something here that you find helpful or interesting, that’s wonderful. This is my personal blog. If you don't like what you have read here then, just like when you go into a restaurant or bar that allows smoking, if you don't like it, there's something at the front that has hinges on it and it is called a "door."
Great write up Mike. On of the link above does not work, but I have similar data and agree with you.
ReplyDeleteSo our air is ok, but the next step will be our water and food that we should be a little cautious about. Though we are below the danger levels, I am being a little cautious for my little one. Here is a link for Tokyo Tap water. My main concern is Cesium 137, but as you can see, all levels are on a down trend.
Enjoy and have a great Sunday.
http://ftp.jaist.ac.jp/pub/emergency/monitoring.tokyo-eiken.go.jp/monitoring/w-past_data.html
Currently, the radiation levels have been dropping consistently over these last 4 days... Not to say that they were high before, they weren't. But it's nice to see them going down down down!
ReplyDeleteBe real careful with KI – even the WHO does not recommend its use for those over 40: http://www.who.int/ionizing_radiation/pub_meet/en/Iodine_Prophylaxis_guide.pdf
ReplyDeleteFor adults over 40, the scientific evidence suggests that stable iodine prophylaxis not be recommended unless doses to the thyroid from inhalation are expected to exceed levels that would threaten thyroid function. This is because the risk of radiation induced thyroid carcinoma in this group is very low while, on the other hand, the risk of side effects increases with age.
If you are not in danger of being exposed to large amounts of I-131, you should not be taking KI, period. This stuff does not fall into the “well, I’ll take two aspirin now because I might get a headache later” category.
comparing radiation ingested to environmental radiation that occurs naturally is denial at it's most dangerous. Please do some research. :(
ReplyDeleteDear Anon... You are the one who needs to do some research (as well as go back to school and brush up on your reading comprehension). No one is ingesting radiation in Tokyo from power plants that are downwind and 230 kilometers away.
ReplyDeleteThere might be people at Fukushima who are... But read it again... Tokyo! Tokyo! Tokyo! This is about Tokyo. Not Fukushima. That should be simple enough to understand even for those who are reading & comprehension impaired.
Please tell me what happens if there is a meltdown at the reactor in Fukishima, or an explosion. How does that affect Tokyo and environs?
ReplyDeleteI wish I could believe we aren't inhaling or injesting radioactive particles but I can't. Just about every neighboring prefecture to Tokyo (even Kanagawa) has had contaminated vegetation so I would think that that means there is radioactive dust flying around. They've even detected it in New England. (This is a different person than posted anonymously before on this entry)
ReplyDeleteI add the daily radiation levels of four places in Japan every day too ...
ReplyDeletehttp://japan-afterthebigearthquake.blogspot.com/2011/02/daily-radiation-eastern-japan.html
Thanks for your posts about the real situation in Japan.
Gabi from Okayama
living in Japan since 1977