If the containment structure around the reactor is not strong enough, the fuel potentially could be exposed to the outside environment, and can have devastating consequences for nearby communities.

如果反应堆的外壳结构不够坚固的话，那么燃料就有可能泄露到外面的环境，这将会对周围的地区产生毁灭性的结果。

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The entire primary loop of the nuclear reactor - the pressure vessel, pipes, and pumps that contain the coolant (water) - are housed in the containment structure.

整个最初的核反应循环是这样的——高压管、管道、泵、冷却剂(水)——这些被安装在容器型建筑中。

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The lack of a containment structure for the Chernobyl reactor, whichmight have limited the emission of radioactivity into the atmosphere after theexplosion, is only the most glaring example.

切尔诺贝利核电站的反应堆没有安全壳结构，安全壳结构本可以在爆炸后限制辐射气体排放到大气中，所以，切尔诺贝利核电站就是安全壳结构缺失的最佳反例。

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In a reactor, the containment structure may melt.

FORBES: Housing's Positive Feedback Loop and the Coming Meltdown

Tuesday's explosion at the No. 2 reactor in the Fukushima complex, 150 miles north of Tokyo, for the first time raised the possibility that the key containment structure of the unit, which protects the reactor vessel and keeps dangerous radioactive materials from leaking out, had been damaged.

WSJ: Japan's Nuclear Crisis Escalates

This rectangular secondary containment building is the structure that most people have seen in pictures of the reactor.

FORBES: Explainer: What Caused The Incident At Fukushima-Daiichi