Oceanic dispersion of Fukushima-derived Cs-137 simulated by multiple oceanic general circulation models

Publication date: December 2017
Source:Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, Volume 180
Author(s): Hideyuki Kawamura, Akiko Furuno, Takuya Kobayashi, Teiji In, Tomoharu Nakayama, Yoichi Ishikawa, Yasumasa Miyazawa, Norihisa Usui
To understand the concentration and amount of Fukushima-derived Cs-137 in the ocean, this study simulated the oceanic dispersion of Cs-137 by atmospheric and oceanic dispersion simulations. The oceanic dispersion simulations were carried out with an oceanic dispersion model and multiple oceanic general circulation models. The Cs-137 concentrations were sensitive to ocean currents in the coastal, offshore, and open oceans. The mean Cs-137 concentrations of the multiple models relatively well agreed with the observed concentrations in the coastal and offshore oceans during the first few months after the Fukushima disaster, and in the open ocean during the first year after the disaster. The Cs-137 amounts were quantified in the coastal, offshore, and open oceans during the first year after the disaster. It was suggested that Cs-137 actively dispersed from the coastal and offshore oceans to the open ocean, and from the surface layer to the deeper layers in the North Pacific.



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