Akhir 24, 1432, March 29, 2011, SPA -- South Korean scientists have detected traces of radioactive iodine in the air above Seoul and other parts of the country, news reports said Tuesday. The Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety said the particles of iodine-131 might have come from the Japanese nuclear power plant at Fukushima that was damaged in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, the broadcaster KBS reported. The concentrations were being analyzed but were probably too low to pose any threat to people's health or the environment, the scientists were reported as saying by DPA. If inhaled, iodine-131, a radioactive isotope of iodine, accumulates in the thyroid gland, where the gamma and beta radiation it gives off can increase the risk of cancer.
