Japan nuclear crisis: spent fuel rods pose new dangers

  • 9 years ago
Spent nuclear fuel rods at the Fukushima I Number 4 reactor are in danger of reaching criticality. To cool the rods, one idea is to spray boric acid from a helicopter. But officials worry about the safety of this plan. Another idea is to spray coolant directly from hoses. But workers would be exposed to deadly radiation within 16 seconds.