{"id":395,"date":"2021-12-02T05:00:20","date_gmt":"2021-12-02T04:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sciencefocus.com\/?p=105755"},"modified":"2021-12-02T05:30:10","modified_gmt":"2021-12-02T04:30:10","slug":"picturing-the-invisible-the-fukushima-disaster-10-years-on","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/rss_feed\/picturing-the-invisible-the-fukushima-disaster-10-years-on\/","title":{"rendered":"Picturing the invisible: The Fukushima disaster 10 years on"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>

By James Cutmore\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 02 December 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n
\n
\n
\n

It\u2019s hard to believe that the Tohoku earthquake and subsequent devastating tsunami in northeast Japan happened over 10 years ago. But a new exhibition at the Royal Geographical Society has brought together six celebrated photographers to examine the lasting legacy of the earthquake, tsunami and subsequent nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

This exhibit captures how, over ten years after the events of 2011, large areas of land remain uninhabitable. It also explores how efforts to decontaminate the region continue. The exclusion zone is slowly shrinking and as evacuation orders are lifted, residents are being incentivised to return home. So far, few people have chosen to do so. One village found that only a third of its residents chose to return, and more than 70 per cent of those people were over the age of 65.<\/p>\n

The exhibition runs until the 23 December 2021 at the Royal Geographic Society, London. You can also view more images online at the \u2018Picturing the Invisible\u2019<\/a> website.<\/p>\n

We bring you some images from the exhibition that show some of these recovery efforts in action.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The spiral shore<\/h2>\n
\""Fukushima\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A deserted beach within the Fukushima exclusion zone. Photo by Lieko Shiga<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\""Fukushima\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
An old couple from the coastal village of Kitakama, Japan, hold a dead tree taken from a nearby forest. The 2011 earthquake killed 60 residents of this small village. Photo by Lieko Shiga<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A Mirror on the Other Side, Maquette<\/h2>\n
\""Fukushima\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A daguerreotype (an early photography process) of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, partially obscured by powerful waves.\u00a0Photo by Takashi Arai<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Restricted residence<\/h2>\n
\""Restricted\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A thermal image of cattle in the exclusion zone around Fukushima. These cattle are too contaminated to be used in farming or sold for food, but the farmer who owns them refuses to allow them to be put to sleep. Photo by Giles Price<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\""Thermal\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A man carrying a camera is photographed in the exclusion zone using a thermal imaging camera. Photo by Giles Price<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Evacuation<\/h2>\n
\""Footprints\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Radioactive footprints of residents of Fukushima, imaged using autoradiography. Photo by Masamichi Kagaya<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Nuclear Samurai<\/h2>\n
\""Young\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Taken during the resumption of the Soma Nomaoi festival after the \u2018triple disaster\u2019 in Fukushima, this photo from Thom Davies\u2019 \u2018Nuclear Samurai\u2019 series challenges us to think about how the young people of Fukushima, torn as they are between pride in their historical greatness and the various prohibitions imposed on them by the persistent presence of radioactivity, envisage their future.\u00a0Photo by Thom Davies<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Take a look at some of our other galleries:<\/strong><\/p>\n