"Japan's nuclear regulator has amassed power while growing closer to the industry it regulates, according to former regulators and industry critics who blame the trend for lapses that may have contributed to the Fukushima Daiichi accident."
"As the Japanese authorities order a wider evacuation area around the stricken Fukushima reactor complex to as far out as 19 miles, three health and environmental groups in the United States announced that they were seeking further information about why American officials recommended that its citizens keep at least 50 miles away."
Tsunamis are urgent news when the warning sounds. When a big one catches people unprepared, the disaster can be huge. But there are further stories about planning, preparation, disaster-proofing, recovery, and more.
The use of nuclear energy to generate power has been a major policy debate for decades. While the best decisions may be based on facts, many risk calculations are actually values choices. Here are some of the best sources for both facts and opinion.
Earthquakes are often enough a disaster and response story. But there are important stories all the time about seismicity, preparation, prevention, planning, engineering, and other facets. Here are some key sources and starting points for reporters.
"Japanese officials began encouraging people to evacuate a larger swath of territory around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant on Friday as new signs emerged that parts of the crippled facility are so damaged and contaminated that it will be hard to bring the plant under control soon."
The big international Earth Summit coming next year in Rio de Janiero -- 20 years after the epochal original meeting there -- may generate both good news and bad news about the future of the planet.
"Japan’s effort to contain the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant suffered a setback, an official said on Friday, citing evidence that the reactor vessel of the No. 3 unit may have been damaged."
"Spawned by strangely cold temperatures, 'beautiful' clouds helped strip the Arctic atmosphere of most of its protective ozone this winter, new research shows."
"An especially large moon will appear to rise on Saturday in the most extreme example of a so-called super-moon phenomenon in nearly 20 years, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory."
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