Y11 Unit 1 Isotopes

​Protium is the regular version of hydrogen and is represented by the letter H.

​​Protium

​Deuterium is a stable isotope of hydrogen, which, unlike “normal” hydrogen atoms, or protium, also contains a neutron.

​​Deuterium

Tritium is produced naturally in the upper atmosphere when cosmic rays strike nitrogen molecules in the air. Tritium is also produced during nuclear weapons explosions, and as a byproduct in nuclear reactors.

​​Tritium

​-"the second worst nuclear accident after Chernobyl"-

It was reported that tsunami waves generated by the main shock of the Japan earthquake on March 11, 2011, damaged the backup generators at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Rising residual heat within each reactor’s core caused the fuel rods in reactors 1, 2, and 3 to overheat and partially melt down, leading at times to the release of radiation.

Since the disaster, power plant company Tepco has been pumping in water to cool down the Fukushima nuclear reactors' fuel rods. This means every day the plant produces contaminated water, which is stored in massive tanks.

In 2023, Japan began to release the diluted contaminated water back to the ocean which caused protests from the world.