Michio Kaku: Is It a Good Idea to Nuke the Oil Leak?

To those members, and people who have been demanding for the use of a nuclear device to stop the oil leak here are a few excerpts from Dr. Michio Kaku.

...
If this takes place under the sea floor (which has never been done before), there are bound to be complications. First, there would be the release of dangerous, water-soluble chemicals such as radioactive iodine, strontium, and cesium, which would contaminate the food chain in the Gulf. Second, the "seal" created by the glassified sand is probably unstable. And third, it might actually make the problem worse, creating many mini leaks on the ocean floor. Determining the precise effect of such an underwater blast would depend on crucial computer simulations of the various layers of rock under the seafloor, which has never been done before.

In other words, this would bea huge science experiment, with unintended consequences. Furthermore, with hurricane season upon us, and predictions of eight or more hurricanes for this season, it means that seawater several hundred feet below the surface of the water could be churned up and then deposited over the South. This seawater, containing oils and radioactive fission products, would magnify the environmental problem.

In summary, it is not a good idea to use nukes to seal up oil leaks.

bigthink.com...


Would such people who have been calling for the use of a nuke or more listen to reason? or will they continue to parrot how the Russians did it on land in the 70s, never mind that the Russians have gotten pretty good at hidding the truth about "accidents," and never mind that this OIL leak is occurring at over 5,000 feet under the ocean where there has NEVER been a nuclear device detonated, or used to seal or contain anything.

Should we listen to the same Russian government that was giving our troop movements to Saddam's regime during the war? With that sort of "friend", who needs "enemies"?



[edit on 1-7-2010 by ElectricUniverse]

What michio needs to do is to get back to teaching american scientists to torture innocent humans, before deciding about this.

By the way you need the worlds biggest hydrogen bomb to fix this.

reply to post by ElectricUniverse


Thanks for this!

There also have been those who have informed me that detonating such a nuclear warhead would not make our waters radioactive! That this action would not have a serious effect on our waters, sea life, or Humanity.

You wouldn't think it would take a physicist to figure this out and prove the point, but apparently on ATS, it does.

Thanks.

ridiculous idea.....kaku knows his sh3t i think ill take his word on this.......1st..how are we so dumb to not have the ability to stop this when it happened...why was it allowed if we cannot do this......2nd why do we want to try and use techniques which are untested and/or outdated.......i think the relief wells are the only option and i believe we need many of them......i was watching tony heyward in a meeting and he said nothing we can do until relief wells are drilled and he had this hopeless look.....like we (bp/tony heyward) are fu3ked.....we humans waste money on senseless materials when the only thing important is knowledge.....which obviously is miniscule if we attempted to drill this 5,000 ft below water and then a super deep well at that and all the while the oil is being pumped to a floating oil rig which is held in place by gps......guess we havent heard of emp's and solar flares


[edit on 1-7-2010 by JTpirate]

Originally posted by andy1033
What michio needs to do is to get back to teaching american scientists to torture innocent humans, before deciding about this.

What in the world are you talking about?...

Originally posted by andy1033
By the way you need the worlds biggest hydrogen bomb to fix this.

Right... if this was your attempt at a joke, you have a real bad sense of humor...

reply to post by JTpirate


The problem is that in order to have the relief wells work they need to drill, not only under 5,000 feet of water, but several thousand feet under the formations.

Even with the best directional drillers, even with the best mud engineers and the best field engineers, the best rig crew in general, and the best equipment, at these distances there is only a guarantee to hit the target anywhere the size of a medium size conference room....and the size of the target they will be aiming at is approximately the size of a plate.

Perhaps now some people might understand the real possibility that this leak will not be capped at any time in the foreseeable future.



[edit on 1-7-2010 by ElectricUniverse]

So we are damned if we do Nuke it.

Or

Damned if we don't Nuke it.

Well lets try Hydrogen Bombs....the shock-wave is what they want the Nuke for anyways.

So why use a dirty bomb?


Edited to add: More then one hydrogen bomb can be used, its not like there is a limit on how many bombs there are...

[edit on 1-7-2010 by Quickfix]

Originally posted by andy1033
What michio needs to do is to get back to teaching american scientists to torture innocent humans, before deciding about this.

By the way you need the worlds biggest hydrogen bomb to fix this.

yeah youre a genius. haha! sarcasm is the best. anyways...

i havent looked into this nuclear option but i know its been done a couple times successfully. but not reliable at all. and if its a damn volcano like has been proposed then where are we? screwed thats where.

i have no opinion. and thats all you have. but i cant sit idly by as you attack my homie michio. your i.q. couldnt even hold a candle bub

reply to post by Quickfix


Please use some common sense. Meanwhile a hydrogen bomb might not add radiation, the glass formation formed by the explosion will be unstable. Add to that the fact that there are several faults running close to that area, and two of which would very probably sink at least New Orleans if a nuke or Hydrogen bomb or more are used.

Then there is the fact that there are deposits which have natural radiation and using a hydrogen bomb could very well cause more fissures to form and release this radiation and even more methane, non-methane VOCs, H2S, and other gases alongside oil which would release all of these much faster, giving less time to nature to adapt and slowly regenerate.

No hydrogen bomb, and no nuke will help this.



[edit on 1-7-2010 by ElectricUniverse]

I am going to sound like a Mockingbird but I am going to continue to say this, "pull the equipment completely out of the ground and let Mother Nature do what Mother Nature does so well."

This is something that can correct itself. Nature will fix it, She is not as stupid as we are.

The real sad part is that the pipes extending down into the depths of this nightmare were not meant to be removed. They always figured they could just cap the bloody things. This is why an across the board ruling should be made to stop this madness upon the planet.

We can only hope that the continuous movement of debris will slowly blast away the pipes until there is only natural strata. Then it will close itself, I promise!

reply to post by ElectricUniverse


Well the other thing to do would be use the microbes, but they aren't and likely wont. Wheres the common sense there????

The Nuke was not my suggestion.....

The oil has to stop flowing. So I guess the alternative wells are the best bet...

Kinda sounds preposterous to me though...

Wow....Sticking a nuclear match to oil that burns and gases that explode. Not only that, do it under a mile of water that will compress the force of the blast and impact the sea bed with much more force that an air burst. This blast would create a vast crater over a site that has been venting gases and oils gor three months. Bound to be some empty space by now. Sounds like sticking a flare into napalm. Ever read the story about how Sodom and Gommorah and the other cities of the plain? Fire and Brimstone rained down from the sky. We would be guaranteed radioactive rain which would contaminate our food and water resources. This is the Big Game......we cannot give positions of power to people based on who they know rather then what they know.

I say lets do it in 2 weeks, if the first relief well fails.

A bit of radioactivity can't harm that much.

Originally posted by Greensage

This is something that can correct itself. Nature will fix it, She is not as stupid as we are.

Nature will fix it, but first it needs to kill humanity to ensure this won't happen again.

[edit on 1-7-2010 by ickylevel]

Originally posted by ickylevel
I say lets do it in 2 weeks, if the first relief well fails.

A bit of radioactivity can't harm that much.

For crying out loud...you really have got to be kidding... I could say other things but I would probably be banned for saying the truth...

Originally posted by ickylevel
Nature will fix it, but first it needs to kill humanity to ensure this won't happen again.

And another hater of humanity...

The dinosaurs, and other animals, including mammals were also destroyed by nature... I guess they were eating and farting too much to the likes of people like you...

If mankind does not leave this planet eventually there would be one or another E.L.E. that will wipe out most, or all of humanity, but it won't be because of the twisted belief by some haters that "mankind deserves it"...

Seriously, if you hate mankind that much why are you still alive?...


[edit on 1-7-2010 by ElectricUniverse]

Well for those you that keep insisting we use a nuke I guess if you don't mind eating three eyed fish and eating shrimp and oysters that can walk off the plate in front of you then I say go for it.
Yes I am not being serious here, so you need to stop and really think about what the damage would do and are you ready to live with the consequences that will last for yours and your kids and grandkids lifetime. There is nothing that could be said that would make me think that is the best thing to do. I do not know what could be the best thing to do and it seems like noone else does either.I just hate the thought of what the gulf is gonna be like after this mess. I grew up on the beach just south of Tampa and I now live near Atlanta and every time I go back to visit family the first thing I do is go to the beach and enjoy the beauty of the gulf. Now this happens and it hurts to know it will never be the same again. I know the gulf will slowly get better in time but if a nuke is used it will never recover from the fallout. Nukes are not even close to the answer on how to get this under control.
And Michio Kaku is a very intelligent man that people should listen to him when he speaks on things. People may not like him,but he does know what he is talking about.
[edit on 1-7-2010 by tsurfer2000h]

[edit on 1-7-2010 by tsurfer2000h]

If we use a nuke then every other country that has them is gonna want to use a nuke and then even more shtf. I dont see this being a good idea for anything.

reply to post by ickylevel


Did I read this right? you did say,
"A bit of radioactivity can't harm that much"
I will bet that there are some people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki that survived may have a way different opinion on that remark.

reply to post by ElectricUniverse


Thank you, you made me laugh when I read the part about them eating and farting. That is priceless. I never thought about that, but wouldn't it be the craziest thing if it part of the reason they died.

Originally posted by tsurfer2000h
Well for those you that keep insisting we use a nuke I guess if you don't mind eating three eyed fish and eating shrimp and oysters that can walk off the plate in front of you then I say go for it.

[edit on 1-7-2010 by tsurfer2000h]

I could eat those as long as it tastes good, wont make me sick or shorten my life. I am eating the 3 eyed fish not dating it

reply to post by Greensage


I totally agree when you say, "Nature...(she) is not as stupid as we are."
And I'm sure she certainly can do no worse at fixing this. Our feeble efforts are pathetic.

I said on another thread that I could not for the life of me understand how an underground bomb could work. It's all very well saying the Russian's were successful, or who ever, but folks; THIS IS AN UNPRECEDENTED SITUATION! It's not a 'typical' oil mishap. They didn't even have a permit when they started drilling which makes it illegal. THEN they push science beyond its limit and are now are dealing with the unknown; a Pandora's box as many have called it. Explosions that far down when we don't know what may be encountered there sounds just like the kind of hubris that started this whole debacle in the first place! We don't know squat!