Northerly winds carried radioactive material from the quake-damaged Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant more than 200 kilometers south to Tokyo on Tuesday morning.
Radiation levels rose in areas to the south of the plant in the hours before and after an explosion at the plant's No.2 reactor, which occurred at 6.00 AM.
In Iwaki city, about 40 kilometers south of the plant, the radiation level was 470 times higher than normal as of 4:00 AM, but has since dropped.
Local government officials say that such levels are low enough not to pose a danger to humans.
Higher-than-normal levels of radiation were also detected more than 200 kilometers away in Tokyo and 4 neighboring prefectures.
Local government officials say the radiation does not pose a health hazard, as it remains less than one-hundredth of the acceptable level of annual exposure for humans.
Keiichi Nakagawa, an expert on radiotherapy at the University of Tokyo, says the radioactive material in Tokyo most likely came from the Fukushima nuclear plant, but the amount is tiny and does not pose a health threat.
He says people should remain calm, as the radiation released by the Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant is unlikely to reach hazardous levels.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011 19:44 +0900 (JST) NHK on line
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