LOS ANGELES (AFP) – California is closely monitoring efforts to contain leaks from a quake-damaged Japanese nuclear plant, a spokesman said Saturday, as experts said radiation could be blown out across the Pacific.

While officials downplayed any immediate danger, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission deployed two experts to Japan, where the Fukushima plant, which was rocked by a large explosion earlier in the day in the aftermath of Japan's strongest-ever earthquake.

"At present there is no danger to California. However we are monitoring the situation closely in conjunction with our federal partners," Michael Sicilia, spokesman for California Department of Public Health, told AFP.

"California does have radioactivity monitoring systems in place for air, water and the food supply and can enhance that monitoring if a danger exists," he added.

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Mar 14, 2011 – 6:39 AM

Between radiation concerns, displaced persons and the cleanup and rebuilding process, Japan's weather will be of greater concern for some time to come.

And with the current La Nina expected to continue at least through spring, the weather in Japan might be cooler and wetter than average.

A La Nina -- a cooling of sea-surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific -- influences weather patterns across the globe. One common effect is an increase in the intensity of storm systems in the northern branch of the jet stream. This effect is most pronounced during winter, but with a well-defined La Nina -- such as the current one -- northern storms tend to continue well into spring. During a La Nina winter, Japan is typically cooler than average.

With the northern part of the island being the hardest hit by the earthquake -- the epicenter of the quake was a latitude similar to Washington, D.C.'s -- these regions might experience more frequent, chilly storm systems.

Monday, March 14th 2011, 9:36 AM

A second hydrogen explosion rocked a crippled Japanese nuclear reactor Monday, spewing a giant cloud of smoke into the air and injuring 11 workers, officials said.

The blast was so large it could be felt 25 miles away.

The plant's operator, however, insisted that radiation levels around the facility remained within legal limits.

A similar explosion was triggered Saturday at the Fukushima Dai-ichi reactor after cooling systems were damaged by Friday's earthquake and tsunami.

Officials said a separate damaged reactor at the facility was also experiencing severe problems after its fuel rods became fully exposed, raising the risk of overheating and yet another explosion.

A state of emergency has been declared at six reactors where cooling systems and backup generators failed following Friday's twin disasters.

Friday's earthquake has seen Japan's share market record its biggest one day loss since the middle of the global financial crisis.

The Nikkei slumped more than 6 per cent, despite the Bank of Japan pumping a record $US181 billion into the nation's financial system.

Shares in Tokyo Electric went untraded. There were plenty of sellers, but no buyers for the company that owns a nuclear reactor which is in danger of a meltdown.

Other blue chip companies such as Toyota and Sony also slid heavily, due to the disruption caused to production by the earthquake, tsunami and associated power cuts.

The Australian share market fell in empathy, but recovered from earlier losses of more than 1 per cent to finish only 0.5 cent down.

The All Ordinaries lost 25 points to 4,710, while the ASX 200 lost 18 points to 4,626.

The hardest hit sector was uranium miners on fears the reactor problems in Japan will lead to a shift away from nuclear power.

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CNN

Mar 13, 2011; 12:08 PM ET

Three reactor units at the Onagawa plant are being watched and controlled for radiation leaks and possible meltdown.

The wind direction may impact where the radiation goes both at a local level and even across the globe. The wind direction at both of these locations are similar since the Onagawa power plant is located just to the northeast of Fukushima power plant.

"The exact direction of the winds would have to be known at the time of the release of a large amount of radiation to understand exactly where the radiation would go," according to Expert Senior Global Meteorologist Jim Andrews.

It is unknown when a large release of radiation would occur, if at all, at this point.

"You can calculate how long the release of a radiation would take to cross the Pacific from Japan to the U.S. by choosing different speeds that the radioactive particles might be moving and using the direct distance between given locations- say Sendai, Japan, and Seattle, Wash.," Andrews added.

World sends disaster relief teams to Japan

GENEVA | Sat Mar 12, 2011 9:21am EST

The international community started to send disaster relief teams on Saturday to help Japan after it suffered a massive earthquake and tsunami, with the United Nations sending a group to help co-ordinate work.

"We are in the process of deploying 9 experts who are among the most experienced we have for dealing with catastrophes. They will help evaluate needs and coordinate assistance with Japanese authorities," Elisabeth Byrs, spokeswoman of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told Reuters.

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