European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 23, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes wednesday. August 23,1989 voyager discovers ring around Neptune photographs taken 18 hours apart by voyager 2 show Cloud changes around Neptune s great dark spot Pasadena Calif. A astronomers who predicted that Neptune would not have rings were sur prised to discover a faint but Complete ring around the planet tuesday in pictures sent by voyager 2. Researchers first hailed the image on voyager s Pho tos As the rediscovery of the ghost arc a partial ring identified by the voyager 2 spacecraft on aug. 11, but further analysis showed the arc was a continuous ring around the planet. It is Neptune s first ring said Bradford Smith Leader of the spacecraft imaging team. The inner arc the one we were unable to find since the discovery aug. 11 images is there and it is continuous All the Way  voyager launched in 1977, is in the final stages of its 4.4 billion mile trip to Neptune. It will pass by the outermost planet at 8 55 . Thursday beaming images Back to Earth. Observations of Neptune from Earth had led Astron omers to predict that the planet would be encircled by ring arcs partial rings. The newly discovered ring is so faint that it was not visible from Earth or from earlier voyager photographs Smith said. It just in t enough material to be detected from the ground he said. The ring appeared in a series of 16 photographs of the arc Region. They included belter views of the other arc discovered aug. 11. Researchers said they expect to find More arcs As voyager passes behind Neptune and scans the arc Region while it is lit from behind by the Sun. Ring arcs unlike anything seen around the other planets arc composed of debris that could be the Rem Nants of Moons torn apart by gravitational forces or collisions researchers said. Voyager s observations of Neptune on monday revealed a churning turbulent atmosphere with huge White Clouds of Frozen natural Gas and a string of storms trailing behind an Earth size Cyclone. One Small collection of Clouds called the Scooter is whirling around the planet s surface once every 16 hours faster than anything else so far seen on Nep tune said Bradford Smith head of the voyager imag ing team. Photographs of the planet s biggest Moon Triton show it is brighter cooler and smaller than scientists had thought. Smith said the shots suggest Triton May be partly covered with Snow and Frozen water. It May Snow there from time to time he said monday. The pictures also show dark spots near Triton s Equator and a pinkish cast that May be from discoloured Frozen natural Gas or methane. Researchers had speculated that Triton might have oceans of liquid nitrogen bul Smith said any such oceans would have to be fro zen Over. Triton is an especially intriguing object Smith said. It s in the wrong orbit. It s going backward around Neptune. Something truly catastrophic must have happened some time in its  scientists believe Triton could have been a Comet that collided with one of Neptune s Moons because it rotates in the opposite direction from the planet unlike most Moons in the solar system. Edward Stone the voyager project scientist said such a collision could have slowed Triton enough to allow it to become trapped in a Long Oval orbit around Neptune. As that orbit gradually became More circular tidal forces would have caused the Moon to heat perhaps turning Triton into a Ball of molten Rock and water for i billion years he said. If that were the Case More detailed photographs later this week should show that Triton has fewer meteorite craters than it otherwise would have. It s very difficult right now to say anything about what s going on on Triton Smith said. Voyager continued to snap pictures of Neptune and Triton tuesday As it moved toward its closest encounter with Neptune at 8 55 . Thursday when it will pass 3,000 Miles from the planet. It also searched for auroral lights Over Neptune s South pole and made further observations of Neptune s weather and variations in brightness on Triton s sur face. The pictures of Triton showed it has a diameter of 1,740 Miles about four fifths the size of Earth s Moon and about half the size scientists previously thought researchers puzzled Over the unexpected discovery of the intense weather on Neptune. Neptune is an extremely dynamic planet with weather resembling Jupiter s but with less than 50 percent of Jupiter s Energy Smith said. New photographs show that the great dark spot an Earth size Cyclone discovered earlier by voyager is leaving in its Wake a Long Tail of swirling storms. Voyager observed winds on uranus similar to those now being seen on Neptune but without the turbulence. Neptune contains More heat than uranus and the turbulence could be the result of warmer material bub bling up from deep inside the mostly liquid planet Smith said. Postal service to Cut Obs in consolidation move Washington a the postal service tuesday said it is eliminating 1,000 managerial and administrative positions at 39 facilities nationwide in a consolidation move. The Agency said the cuts will have no effect on mail service. The consolidation which takes effect sept. 23, is expected to save s30 million to $35 million a year the postal service said. Jobs will be eliminated through Early retirements and other forms of attrition postal officials said. Employees affected by the mergers will be reassigned within commuting Dis Tance of their present jobs when possible or they will be relocated the postal serv ice said. No processing centers will be shut Down and no one will lose employ ment Deputy postmaster Michael s. Coughlin said. The consolidation centralizes decision making and saves  the moves continue a reorganization that began in March 1986. Since then the postal service has established 75 Field divisions and eliminated 42 District offices and Cut the number of management sectional centers from 212 to 131. After the newest round there will be 73 Field divisions and 94 sectional Cen ters. Facilities that House the manage ment centers and Field divisions will continue their mail handling operations the service said. Under the consolidation the Brooklyn Field division in new York will become part of the Queens division and the St. Paul division will become part of the Minneapolis division. The management sectional centers to be eliminated Are Northeast Region Binghamton and Utica . Red Bank and Summit no. Portsmouth . Burlington it and Bangor  Region Ashland Corby and Bowling Green by. Charlottesville a. Bluefield . And Zanesville Ohio. Southern Region Alexandria la. Huntsville ala., Jonesboro Ark. Tupelo miss. Waco Texas and Chattanooga  Region Carbondale and Champaign 111. Sioux City Iowa u Fayette and South Bend ind. Eau Claire and Oshkosh wis. Lincoln neb. Sagi naw. Flint and Kalamazoo.  Region Pasadena Redding and Marysville Calif. Pocatello Idaho Salem Ore. Fairbanks Alaska and Flagstaff Ariz. Alibi clears Green River suspect of 1st slayings Seattle a the Man called a viable suspect in the Green River killings was out of town when the serial murders of prostitutes began authorities said. An investigator said monday that a task Force had confirmed an Alibi of William Jay Stevens ii Clearing the onetime Law student of at least the first four of the 40 or More slayings in the mysterious Case. King county police capt. Robert Evans head of the task Force said Stevens was vacationing on the East coast in july 1982, when the first victims were killed. Evans comments were reported in tuesday s Seattle times and were confirmed by his spokesman Cecil Ray. Stevens is still considered a person of interest he is not being dropped Ray said. At a Spokane news conference last week Stevens family produced credit card receipts and photographs to document a family vacation they said proved Ste Vens was not in the Seattle area when the first murders occurred. Police have said one or More killers could be responsible for the murders of dozens of Young women who disappeared around Seattle and Portland Ore., from 1982 through 1984. Police say at least 40 and possibly As Many As 48 murders Are involved in the nation s worst unsolved serial murder Case which takes its name from the South King county River where the first victims were found. Evans said the investigation of Stevens would continue. This Means we appear to have verified one piece of the equation Evans said. We will continue our work until we re satisfied he has no involvement in any unsolved crimes in King county.". The suspect has not been arrested or charged in the killings and has issued a statement through his attorney denying his involvement. Stevens a former student at Gonzaga Law school i Spokane is serving time in the King county jail in Seattle for his 1981 escape from work release after he was convicted of possessing stolen  is scheduled for release sept 25.he was identified As a viable suspect in an affidavit used last month to obtain a search warrant of his two Spokane residences. That search yielded 1,800 videotapes police uniforms and extensive credit card