US Aircraft Carrier Ronald Reagan passed through a radioactive cloud from stricken nuclear reactors in Japan

The Pentagon was expected to announce that the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan, which is sailing in the Pacific, passed through a radioactive cloud from stricken nuclear reactors in Japan, causing crew members on deck to receive a month’s worth of radiation in about an hour, government officials said Sunday.

The officials added that American helicopters flying missions about 60 miles north of the damaged reactors became coated with particulate radiation that had to be washed off.

There was no indication that any of the military personnel had experienced ill effects from the exposure. (Everyone is exposed to a small amount of natural background radiation.)

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Fresh blast at Japan nuclear plant (Second blast)

SENDAI, Japan: An explosion rocked an earthquake-hit nuclear plant Monday, as Japan struggled to avert a catastrophic reactor meltdown caused by a quake and tsunami feared to have killed more than 10,000.


At least 11 workers are missing and seven are injured as new explosion rocked Japan's stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power complex, sending a plume of smoke into the air.

After Monday's blast, Japan's nuclear safety agency said it could not confirm whether or not the hydrogen explosion at the plant's No.3 reactor had led to an uncontrolled leak of radioactivity.

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