European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 29, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 28 a a the stars and stripes sunday april 29,1990 Comet Austin on its Way Here a probably by Randy Pruitt staff writer Darmstadt West Germany a in the Middle Ages people looked upon comets As omens of imminent disaster. Today these rare creatures of the solar system Are gazed at with wonder. One May be in the neighbourhood soon. Comet Austin discovered by new zealand Amateur astronomer Rodney Austin in 1989, could turn out to be one of the brightest comets to be seen in 40 years. Then again it May not. A comets Are quite unpredictable a says or. Wal Ter Flury of the european space operations Center in Darmstadt. Flury who likens a Comet to a a dirty snowball a a mixture of ice and dust illuminated by the Sun a says Comet Austin holds Promise of being brighter than Hailey a Comet which was last seen in 1986. Flury says the Comet is expected to Streak across the horizon sometime Between now and May 22. It can Best be viewed from 3 . To 5 . On the Eastern Skyline. The spectacular blend of fire and ice can be observed easier from a dark spot rather than from beneath a lighted area like a Street Light Flury says. Binoculars can improve visibility. But done to set your clocks yet. Comets remember Are hard to forecast. A Flury says predictions of Comet Austin made in january May have been too optimistic. It has just passed Perihelion the Point nearest the Sun in the comets orbit. Quot it does no to look too Good for the Comet but pm not sure a he says. Still even a dire Outlook does no to keep stargazers from looking heavenward in Hopes that  catch a glimpse of austins Bright Tail. Its not every Day that the Peacock of the universe struts his  widows overseas meet to discuss difficulties by Deedee Arrington Doke Kaiserslautern Bureau Ramstein a West Germany a widows of . Military members overseas often face More difficulties in receiving benefits and Good advice than those in the United states. Checks that get lost in the mail Lack of information about a shopping list of various benefits and bureaucratic indifference were a few of the problems discussed saturday by military widows meeting at the Ramstein officers open mess. A a you re on your own Over Here a said one woman whose air Force husband news Brief died two years ago. A we Are the forgotten people. We Arentt in the states we can to make those phone Calls every week. They treat us like we re a Little Fly they can flick  widows of air Force and army personnel As Well As some retired men met to talk about creating a support group for spouses who outlive an Active duty or retired mate. Their meeting was part of retirees Day 90. A a we be got to do something a one woman said. A i done to want to leave Here today until we be decided to form an organization a support  when their husbands die suddenly Many women done to know what paperwork they need or where it is. A husbands who Are invincible who Arentt going to die done to Tell them their wives anything a said air Force master sgt. Maureen Murphy who works with widows on mortuary issues at Ramstein a. Often however the military spouse does no to know either. A they hear death they turn it off a Murphy said. Non-. Spouses of military members run into even greater problems. They must grapple with unfamiliar government agencies look into tax responsibilities to two countries and wrestle with bureaucratic paperwork in a second language. Spouses who had received Little support from the services or . Government agencies were bitter. One woman told of seeking help from an area chaplain Only to be told that he could not assist her because her husband was in a different service. A you Volunteer you support the system like we did if you were a Good air Force wife a a widow said. A you did without your husband 50 percent of the time. And then As leftover spouses we end up feeling like we re begging for something we re entitled  ground based scientists work on Hubble antennae space Center Houston apr the Hubble space Telescope was awakened from its self induced sleep saturday but it was still without the use of its High Speed antennae and its science instruments were on hold unable to begin any observations. The discovery a astronauts meanwhile packed their gear for a return to Earth sunday and made some last minute observations of Earth. The telescopes big Eye has remained open but the Hubble had been in a a Safe Model with All motion stopped because of earlier problems in linking the Hegji Speed dish antennae with a relay satellite. The antennae Are the primary links for relaying scientific data to the ground. Scientists were working on the problem saturday. It will take another Day before the $1.5 billion Telescope is operating the Way it was supposed to in the Start up process said the Hubble Deputy project manager Jean Olivier. Budget cuts mean greater need for volunteers official say deputies from Page 1 Republic on Independence soviet television reported. The soviet Union annexed Lithuania Estonia and Latvia in 1940. The parliament of Estonia has voted to become Independent at an unspecified later Date and Latvia is scheduled to vote on the Issue this week. Lithuanian prime minister Kazimiera Prunskiene said her government still Hopes to begin talks without backing off from Independence decisions but it is considering a proposed temporary freeze on secessionist actions As the maximum Concession it might offer Moscow. Lithuanian president vytautas Landsbergis has said the republics legislature the supreme Council will consider the freeze proposal which came from the leaders of France and Germany. The legislature is to reconvene wednesday. The Kremlin has imposed a blockade on Gas Oil and other supplies to Lithuania As part of the Effort to Force the Republic to Stop its Independence movement. Tass reported saturday that Coal had been added to the embargo list. Much of the Coal Lithuania consumes is imported from Poland and the Republic owes about $1.6 million for Coal supplies so they have been stopped the news Agency said. By Deedee Arrington Doke Kaiserslautern Bureau Ramstein a West Germany a volunteering must become a Way of life for retired military people As the defense budget and troop strength shrink the chairman of the air Force Retiree Council said saturday. Volunteers who donated time at Wilford Hall . Air Force medical Center on Lackland fab Texas recently did $1.2 million Worth of work in a years time retired maj. Gen. Travis Mcneil said. Such a Shadow commands a meaning volunteers who can fill in when staffing is Short should develop at other bases Mcneil told More than 500 people who attended retirees Day 90 at the Ramstein officers open mess. With the shrinking budget will come base closures. And fewer bases will Force retired people to drive farther to get health care and other benefits. However Mcneil said a proposal has been made to keep open medical facilities housing Exchange and commissary and All morale welfare and recreation facilities at the Presidio in san Francisco for example when the base closes. A you done to have to have clusters of huge numbers to make it Cost effective a Mcneil said. A member of . Army Europe a Retiree Council warned that the Impact of budget cuts May be equally severe on retirees because support services a that we so desperately required will face deep slashes. A retirees have served their time and done our duty for our country a retired command sgt. Maj. Don Norris said. A a it a our absolute right to enjoy the benefits we were promised years  also on hand was Gen. Michael Dugan commander of Safe. In a reference to ongoing Force reductions he told Mcneil a you have the Only growth Industry in town. Take care of  president Bush has tapped Dugan 53, to succeed Gen. Larry d. Welch As the next air Force chief of staff. Dugans nomination must be confirmed by the Senate. Dugan went on to say that the United states must keep its military Strong enough to prevent future investments of a blood and  a peace does no to come for free and it does no to come by Accident a he said. In a joking reference to his new Job Dugan said a a in a going to get fired in a couple months. Looks like its going to work out  music publisher Dies Nashville Tenn. Apr music publisher Wesley Rose co founder of the country music Hall of Fame has died at age 72. The cause of death was not  from Page 1 increase to 50 cents for the sunday edition Townsend says. But its not known when a Price increase would begin or How much it would be. A a it a important to Point out that its simply a recommendation at this time a he says. The recommendation is being reviewed by the . European come. A there Are additional costs to Start up a project of this nature a he explains. A the Price increase would cover those associated  the Price increase was recommended by the stars and stripes management and the fund Council a Neucom committee that oversees stars and stripes financial matters and makes recommendations. Townsend says the Price of the newspaper is always aimed at readers with the smallest paycheck. A if the paper is affordable to the troop living in the Barracks then we Are meeting our Mission of providing news and information to All the people living and working in Europe. A those of us who look at the pricing mechanism worry a lot that we done to Price the paper out of the reach of Many of our readers. A troop Isnit going to buy a newspaper if it Means he or she is going to have to give up going to the movies or having a Beer or taking the family out for an occasional  the stars and stripes earns 94 percent of its operating budget through sales of the newspaper ads books and magazines. Although the daily newspaper is sold for 25 cents it costs 41 cents per copy to produce and distribute. The sunday edition which will include the color comics and the new Magazine is expected to Cost 5j cents to produce and distribute