The remote-controlled robots that were sent into the site of the 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan have reportedly 'died', thanks to incredibly high amounts of leaked radioactive materials destroying their wiring. The robots - which take years to manufacture - were designed to swim through the underwater tunnels of the now-defunct cooling pools, and remove hundreds of extremely dangerous blobs of melted fuel rods. But it looks like that’s not going to happen any time soon. In 2011, one of the most severe earthquakes in recorded history triggered a 10-metre-high tsunami that killed nearly 19,000 people and destroyed the homes and jobs of 160,000, and crashed into Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant, leading to several meltdowns. Five years on, and researchers from the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) - the Japanese utility that maintains the site - still can’t figure out how to clean up the highly dangerous radioactive materials in the water and melted fuel rods that remain on the site.

"Efforts to clean up Fukushima, which is considered the largest nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl accident in 1986, are under continued scrutiny after a series of blunders and Tepco's admission that efforts in the short term to contain contamination may take as long as 30-40 years," Peter Dockrill reported for us back in January, when the robots were first deployed. It’s estimated that the team has so far only addressed 10 percent of the mess left behind by the meltdowns, and the pressure to get a move-on is certainly not going to go away any time soon, with news last December that the damaged plant is continuing to leak small amounts of radioactive materials into the Pacific Ocean. Radioactive material has even been showing up on the west coast of the US. One approach Tepco has taken is to build the world’s biggest 'ice wall' around the plant to stop the nearby groundwater being contaminated, but that’s yet to be completed, and it only stems the damage - it doesn’t clean up the mess that’s still sitting in there.

"It is extremely difficult to access the inside of the nuclear plant," Naohiro Masuda, Tepco's head of decommissioning, told Reuters. "The biggest obstacle is the radiation." "The reactors continue to bleed radiation into the ground water and thence into the Pacific Ocean," added Artie Gunderson, a former nuclear engineer who is not involved in the project. "When Tepco finally stops the groundwater, that will be the end of the beginning." As we reported in January, Tepco successfully removed 1,535 spent fuel-rod assemblies from the cooling pool in the reactor 4 building, which was a relatively easy job because that reactor had lower radiation levels, so human workers could oversee the retrieval process more closely. Reactor 3, which is where our poor, recently deceased robots had been sent, contains far higher levels of radiation, and humans can’t get near it. It’s estimated that there are 566 fuel-rod assemblies that need to be removed from just this one reactor.

"The fuel rods melted through their containment vessels in the reactors, and no one knows exactly where they are now," Reuters reports. As soon as the robots got close to the reactors, the radiation destroyed their wiring and rendered them useless, causing long delays, Masuda told the press organisation, adding that because each robot has to be custom-built for each building, it takes two years to develop every single one.carpet cleaning products bugs Meanwhile, the Fukushima site manager, Akiro Ono, admitted that he was "deeply worried" that the storage tanks will leak radioactive water into the sea if they can’t figure out how to get everything cleaned up in time.carpet cleaning companies pittsburgh pa It’s not yet clear if better, stronger robots are the answer to cleaning up the Reactor 3 building, it could be that the technology to build robots that are resistant to such high levels of radiation doesn’t actually exist, and the Tepco researchers will have to come up with some other solution.cheap carpet cleaners dallas tx

What we do know is this problem isn’t going away any time soon, and if leakages occur, it will affect us all, so all we can do is hope that the science will come through. best hoover carpet cleaner pet stainsIn the meantime, you can watch the robots below - in happier times before they were destroyed - and marvel at how freaking cool they once were:steam cleaner for auto partsHealing a Belly-Button PiercingNavel piercings (belly-button piercings), are a common body piercing among women and some men. swimming pool vacuum portThey heal relatively quickly with few complications, like ear piercings. But at times they heal more like a surface piercing, with rejection and migration risks. For the most part, if you follow proper aftercare and healing procedures, you can successfully heal the piercing, unless your body just refuses, which is always a possibility.

Healing a belly-button piercing can be complicated by clothing and friction. Because it's near the waistline, you have to take into account pants, belts, and shirts that could catch on or irritate the piercing, especially considering how often you bend at the waist. Types of Navel PiercingsThe belly button can be pierced at different angles and sides, but generally the more common navel piercings include: Upper Rim: the standard belly button piercing, at the top of the navel ring. Lower Rim: at the bottom of the navel ring. Sides: anywhere in between the upper and lower navel ring; typically the horizontal left or right sides. Some people have been known to get their actual navel (outtie) pierced, which could be called a true navel piercing. However, in my opinion, piercing an outttie should never be done due to the numerous problems that can present themselves from healing, misplacement, and movement. Some people get surface piercings around the navel to accentuate a standard navel piercing.

These are not technically belly-button piercings. Aftercare for a New PiercingIf you stick to proper aftercare and cleaning, you should have minimal problems with just about any piercing. The proper aftercare for navel piercing is as follows: After you get the piercing, make sure that you have a pack of miniature Dixie cups and saline solution: not "contact cleaner," but "saline solution" sold at a pharmacy. Or use a dilute solution of sea salt (1 teaspoon sea salt to 5 ounces water). Clean the navel piercing at least two to three times a day. Wash your hands first. Make sure to use a NEW, unused Dixie cup each day, using just enough saline to fully submerge the piercing. Lay on a flat surface with the cup turned upside down on your belly, in order to fully submerge the navel, allowing the saline to work its way through the piercing. Afterwards, you can dip a Q-Tip into the saline solution and gently go around both holes of the piercing to remove any excess crust or dried blood or fluids.

There is NO other reason to touch the new piercing. Continue the process for at least a month to make sure things are fine. You may experience crust or dried fluid for some time. Whenever this happens, use the Q-Tip to remove the dried fluid. DO's With a New PiercingWear loose-fitting clothing that allows the piercing to breathe: cotton works best. Make sure your hands are clean. Do use a new Dixie cup and Q-Tip each time you clean. Ask your piercer if you have any problems or questions. DON'Ts With a New PiercingDo not use any type of ointment on the piercing—A&D, bacitracin, Neosporin, or Bactine— because it can smother a piercing. Do not use hand sanitizer, Dial soap, or peroxide, as they are all too harsh for a piercing and can cause irritation. Do not wear tight-fitting clothing that restricts the breathing of the piercing. Do not touch your piercing for any reason other than to clean it. Do not change the jewelry until you are absolutley healed.