Some Reports Saying Fukushima, Japan Reactor Shield Now In Meltdown

Contrary to preliminary reports, it appears that the Fukushima, Japan’s Dai-ichi plant, may be experiencing a reactor meltdown. The plant suffered a huge explosion hours ago after operators lost control of its chain reactions. This according to a report by Stratfor, which notes that while its core is still reported to be intact, this could cause much more significant long-term damage than expected.
The reports are partially based on the fact that smoke coming out of the explosion is now being described as “white smoke,” indicating, rather than a conventional fire, that the concrete surrounding the reactor is melting. The piece explains pretty thoroughly what the difference is between a reactor meltdown and a core meltdown (the reactor can start melting before the heat reaches the core at a sufficiently high temperature to feed the chain reactions):