So why didn't they have solar-powered backups on top of those reactors?

[Duer 157099]

Seems to me that if they did, they might still have power going? :shrug:

[somone]

1. They have diesel generators

[jpak]

6. they failed

yup

[Statistical]

2. Not enough power density.

The pumps are rather massive. Couple Megawatts each. Would need a couple acres of solar panels to output that kind of power and then what happens when the sun goes down or it is cloudy.

They have backup generators but it appears they may have been damaged. They will have generators trucked or airlifted in and power supplied to the pumps.

[Duer 157099]

7. OK. Thank you for the logical answer.

I knew there must be one, I just didn't know what it was.

[panader0]

3. A solar powered nuclear reactor

I like it!

[Duer 157099]

5. Hee hee n/t

[tabatha]

4. The solar power would have to be

running all of the time - but the quake happened in the afternoon, so that would not helped overnight.

Otherwise, the solar-generated elecricity has to be stored in a battery and delivered - which is no different from the problem they have.

[valerief]

8. I wonder if wind turbines would have worked. nt

[slackmaster]

9. Because Murphy's Law dictates that problems would happen at night

:shrug: