European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 25, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                �. Match thai Anit can  in Speed a of Jobos Iho Cut pension of human Lite two incl Ith urged that exploring Mars he made Iho Agency primary goal " the Council Sari Tho Goat. Stated Learty and publicly would to a stir Myrtus to focus and Toj programs and to enhance productivity and of Licitr by of Iho Agency Al a match meeting of Nasa officials and advisers. Other proposed initiatives were weighed including an expanded study Ollie Earlh from orbit an accelerated program of solar system exploration by unmanned spacecraft and the slab Ishmonl of a permanent scientific base on the Moon. But the sentiment and consensus seemed to favor Mars according to a source familiar Wilh he discussions. Although Fletcher emphasized that no decision had been made. Nasa has begun examining the technologies required Lor unmanned missions to Mars. Preliminary Mission Plant were described to Industry contractors March 31 a the Jet propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. Calif. The Laboratory Nasa s Center for planetary explore lion is working on the project with the Johnson space Center in Houston. In october the two centers expect to Issue contracts to aerospace companies to study roving vehicle systems and the requirements for descending through the thin Martian atmosphere. No missions to Mars have been attempted since the two american Viking spacecraft landed in 1978. The search tar new space goals began in Earnest after the challenger Accident. In the Glare of Public scrutiny Nasa was faulted Lor poor management of the space shuttle program and was seen As suffering from a Lack of a Clear coherent National space policy. Nasa s triumphs were largely a memory. Ita investment in the shuttles had been at the expense of nearly All else leaving the Agency with no Long Range Mission. When Fletcher took Over the embattled Agency a year ago he appointed Sally k. Ride me astronaut to direct studies of what Nasa s goals should be beyond 1995. By then Nasa expects to have four shuttles in full operation a number of conventional rockets As Well As its orbiting space station. In a preliminary report ride identified tha four leadership initiatives thai were discussed at the March meeting of Nasa executives. The Mars goal was seen As the most exciting and challenging. Fletcher who declined to discuss details said that elements from several of the proposed  be adopted for the Agency s Lone term goals. He said he expected to deliver his recommendations to president Reagan at in appropriate time this Spring or summer. Any one of those programs could unify he Agency Fletcher said. More important the question is what should the nation be doing to maintain its leadership in space tha president thinks we ought to reach out. Farther. But he has other concerns me the budget that May  Congress has not been briefed on Nasa s thinking but the initial reaction to reports of a Long term Mars goal has been mixed. Although congressional leaders have encouraged Nasa to establish motivating goals an aide to a key space subcommittee said it was unrealistic and premature to be advocating Mars objectives White the Fate of the Agency s space station was still in doubt. Pluto  new York times the planet or is it Pluto is the smallest planet in the Sola system a careless wanderer that is usually the farthest planet from the Sun. A heavenly body that Many people think was named aftera Walt Disney character. Now Pluto is facing an identity crisis with some astronomers suggesting in is not a planet at All. Among the proponents of a move to lower Pluto s designation from Small planet to Large asteroid Are Brian Marsden director of the smithsonian institution s Alro physical Observatory in Cambridge mass., and Frank Cooper director of the Burke Baker planetarium in Houston. Opposing the change Are astronomers at the . Naval Observatory in Washington and not unexpectedly Clyde w. Tombaugh who discovered Pluto in 1930. Pluto the dog first appeared in a Mickey mouse animated cartoon in 1931. I Don t think it s Likely to be  Tombaugh said. Why should it Tombaugh emeritus professor of astronomy at new Mexico slate University said Pluto is much larger than the largest asteroid and has its own satellite like the Earth s Moon. Asteroids Don t have satellites he said. Of those who were seeking to downgrade Piuto he said. There Are always people who Wilt try to make a  in an article in the Houston Post. Cooper called Public attention to what the astronomical Community considers a controversy. He said recent discoveries show that Pluto is even smaller than easier thought perhaps 1.600 Miles in diameter rather than 2.500, and that it is a lol less dense than had been calculated. He said that Pluto has perhaps one five Hundredth he mass of Earth it does t seem to belong with other major planets he said. Cooper said Marsden had gone so far As to assign an asteroid number to Pluto. There Are thousands of asteroids moving through the solar system. Marsden made Pluto no. 330 and suggested it be named Adalberta after a lost asteroid. While it has been determined by using satellites and other technology that Pluto is smaller than Tad been believed Cooper said some asteroids Are turning out to be larger. Ceres the largest Cooper said was recently upgraded from a diameter of 480 Miles to 63t. Another discovery he said was evidence that perhaps As Many As 23 asteroids Are accompanied by satellites just As Pluto is. Clyde Tombaugh is a wonderful Parson and certainly would t want to be involved in a controversy with him Cooper said but he added things change very quickly in astronomy  fall s. Cleere the Public affairs officer a the naval Observatory. Is rallying people o the defense of Pluto. Poor Little  she wrote in the Observatory s current newsletter. Have you heard they re trying to take away his planetary status and demote him to an errant asteroid 1, Lor one am against this harassment also against in is Robert s. Harrington an astronomer at the naval Observatory. Of no he said. Ii won t succeed Harrington said it was his theory one that could never be proved that Pluto was originate a satellite of Neptune inside whose orbit it occasionally ships and had escaped. Mow he said while Pluto May Lack planetary Stalus conferred by sue alone it makes up Lor that by virtue of its planetary orbit. Of proposals o downgrade Pluto he said. That s the kind of thing you suggest Whan you re having a beer.". Erma Bombeck last Spring my husband looked up from the travel Section of the newspaper and said have you Ever thought of what it would be like to catch and smoke your own Salmon "1 think of nothing else i said. Think of the Money you could save by doing it yourself and eliminating All those middlemen. And look at All the fun you could have in the  the next sound i was to hear struck terror in my heart Jack Tho Clipper was ripping out the Story in those la lie Zigzag cuts that meant he was going to put it in his Tel Lloyd for future reference. In june he booked passage on a ship Lor the two of us to cruise the Boring sea Oil Iho coast of Alaska in search of bargain Salmon loaves Salmon steaks and pats Tho cos i of the cruise was excessive but As he pointed out Salmon Don t swim by your Iron  since we live in a desert climate Bolh of us had to buy a warm wardrobe for Salmon searching consisting of windbreakers. Parkas knee length boots and extra rain gear. The first several Days were the Tun ones where 1 threw up every minute i was awake. Then it went downhill. We sat in the rain for hours at a time. The Monotony was broken Only when one Man got a Hook caught in his lip and i Houghl a plane was Landing in the boat. And it turned out to be a Mosquito. On the next to the last Day. We caught 45 pounds of Salmon. They were expensive to air freight Home but As my husband said those hello babies will pay for themselves in pure  to Torr arrival necessitated giving away less exotic fare in our Freezer Tike Chicken roasts and steaks. What Wilh the holidays we did t have time to huddle with the Salmon but soon after the new year we Puich Asad an electric smoker which we discovered was missing two Wing nuts. The instructions on How to assemble in were Willen in swedish last week my husband decided the time was perfect to smoke our own Salmon and have that fun he talked about. He was going to serve our guests smoked Salmon on Liolla crackers. He went out once Lor the Salt Tor the brine made another trip Lor the Wood chips and still another Lor bags to hang the Salmon in to dry. Whan he plugged in the smoker the fuse blew. He put the smoker in his workroom for a Wgner voltage plug and the smoke alarm went Olf. By the Lime our guests arrived. The process had t even begun. I put out a bowl of nuts. Al 3 in the morning the Salmon was ready we figured in Cost $3,095 an ounce. Cold costs $j05 an ounce. Who wants to be Worth their weight in Salmon 10 us annul Tunt s saturday april 25. 1967 the stars and stripes Page 17