European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 12, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 a a a the stars and stripes Friday october 12,1990orbiting junk threatens space travel Washington up a accumulation of Man made junk orbiting Earth could Render some Well travelled pathways too risky to use and May imperil the space shuttle and planned space station a congressional report warned thursday. A unless nations reduce the amount of Orbital debris they produce each year future space activities could suffer loss of capability loss of income and even loss of life As a result of collisions Between spacecraft and debris a the office of technology assessment or Ota said. So called space junk includes deactivated spacecraft spent rocket stages fragments of spacecraft and their equipment paint flakes engine exhaust particles and spent soviet reactors the report said. In the vacuum of space objects stay in orbit for a very Long time. Even tiny objects S.C. As a snippet of wire can inflict considerable damage if they strike spacecraft at High speeds. A continued steady growth of Orbital debris could by 2000 or 2010 Render some Well used Low Earth orbits too risky to use a the Ota said. The congressional analysis offered no exact estimate of the amount of Man made debris currently orbiting Earth. However it noted that some experts estimate there May be 30,000 to 70,000 bits of debris 0.4 inches in diameter or greater and Many More smaller objects Are thought to be in orbit. A neither the number nor the distribution of these objects is sufficiently Well known to predict which methods of Protection would be most Cost effective a the 64-Page report said. Echoing concerns raised earlier this year by the general accounting office the Ota said fast moving debts in Low Earth orbits a could Pierce inhabited spacecraft S.C. As the planned International space station Freedom a posing a risk to humans aboard. The report pointed out that the tiny paint Chip that damaged the shuttle challengers Windshield in 1983 probably would have had the Power to puncture the spacesuit of an astronaut who happened to be conducting a Man Euver outside a spacecraft. A the Ota study highlights the fact that we can no longer be so Cavalier about what we leave behind in space a said sen Ernest Hollings d-s.c., chairman of the Senate committee on Commerce science and transportation. A if space faring nations and organizations took a number of Quot relatively simple preventive measures a the steady growth in production of Man made space junk could be greatly reduced the Ota said. Such Steps include designing launch vehicles and spacecraft so they have minimum potential for breaking up protecting spacecraft batteries from shorts that can cause explosions and reducing the Altitude of spent rocket stages to the Point where atmospheric drag effects will bring them  Dot i s by ratifying treaty on German sovereignty Washington up a week after German reunification the Senate added a footnote to history wednesday by ratifying the treaty that formally returns full sovereignty to Germany. The Senate voted 98-0 for the treaty that was signed sept. 12 by the four occupying Powers from world War ii a the United states the soviet Union Britain and France a and by West and East Germany. The treaty formally ends the allies rights Over Germany and Berlin. Germany in turn is confined to the Borders of the two previous German states and renounces aggression. To prevent any implication that the treaty also recognizes the soviet unions postwar Borders the Senate approved a Resolution emphasizing that the United states does not recognize the soviet unions annexation of the Baltic states of Lithuania Latvia and Estonia. The division of Germany ended oct. 3 without Senate ratification of the treaty. Nonetheless the chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee sen. Claiborne Pell said the pact a constitutes a landmark in International  a history in our Century has been dominated by two overarching events a successive world wars in the first pipe dream Billy Jerrod pretends to play a magic flute thursday during oktoberfest a Celebration that brings a bit of Germany to fort Worth Texas. The 6-year-old was among Many who got gussied up for the festivities. Half and throughout the second half a great geopolitical rift that has threatened civilization on our planet a the Rhode Island Democrat said. A the treaty before us today Marks an end to both of these major  although senators from both parties United in hailing the treaty As a Milestone Pell clashed with his committees ranking Republican on the lessons to be drawn from the Accord. Pell called the treaty Quot the crowning achievement of the policy of containment pursued by nine consecutive presidents a saying the a defensive shield of nato eventually wore Down the soviet Union. But sen. Jesse Helms r-n.c., said containment a policy devised in the Truman administration led to a unprecedented communist expansion abroad and the continuation of a heavily armed police state in the soviet Union. Helms argued the treaty owed its existence to president Reagan a defense buildup of the 1980s and should be known As the a Reagan  under the treaty soviet forces will have to withdraw from former East German territory by 1994, while . British and French troops will remain in Berlin through 1994 at the request of the German  schools ban slap bracelets say they re dangerous Pelham . Apr slap bracelets May be a new fashion necessity for Chic children but they wont be seen in elementary schools Here since educators decided the fabric covered steel ornaments Are dangerous. The bracelets come in wild patterns and Bright colors. They Coil around the wrist when slapped against it. If the fabric covering comes off the Sharp steel Edge could Cut hands and arms says Joseph Longobardi principal of colonial and Siw Anoy elementary schools. He ordered the ban last week. Principals at the two other Grade schools in this new York City suburb said they will announce a ban in their school newsletters. A i have four kids of my own a Longobardi said. A i know How popular these things Are. But the possibility of injury does exist because of that Sharp cutting  in Connecticut Walgreen a pulled slap bracelets from 16 stores on tuesday after a 4-year-old girl was reportedly Cut by one. Gene Murtha president of main Street toy of Simsbury conn., which makes the original slap wrap and Sells it for $2.49, said his product causes no injuries. The culprits he said Are cheap imitations made in Taiwan and sold illegally in this country for As Little As 99 cents. A the Metal is inferior Low Grade Caliper steel with poor Quality fabric a he said of the knockoffs. A the sealing is also inferior. The steel can either break through or snap through and cause  a parents Call to Walgreen a in Wallingford conn., prompted the District manager to order bracelets that were foreign copies of the slap wrap pulled from All Connecticut stores said Maryellen Thielen corporate spokeswoman for Walgreen a in Deerfield 111. Stateside some Missouri taxpayers can just say charge it Jefferson City to. A some Missouri residents can put off the tax collector a Little longer with their credit cards. The Missouri department of Revenue allows use of credit cards for some state fees and taxes As a Pilot program in four cities said the departments director Duane Benton. The Agency Hopes to go statewide with the idea within two years be said tuesday. A this idea came about in part because when our delinquent tax collectors Call taxpayers on the phone they told us that one of the first questions they get is a can i charge this to my visa or Mastercard a a Benton said. Credit cards can be used for car and Drivers licenses other car related fees and vehicle sales taxes in Jefferson City Independence Columbia and the St. Louis suburb of Rock Hill Benton said. In addition any delinquent tax payments including income taxes can be paid by credit card in Jefferson City. A $2.40 fee is assessed for each transaction Benton said. The state makes no Money on the fee he said. Unmarried couples granted More benefits at Stanford Stanford Calif. Apr Stanford University officials will Monitor a new policy that gives unmarried couples including homosexuals benefits usually Given to the legally married. A the Impact is impossible to predict at this Point a said Norm Robinson the schools acting Dean of student affairs. The University Board of trustees decision announced tuesday gives same sex and unmarried couples the same rights As legally married students entitling a Domestic partners to housing and University services S.C. As Access to Library and athletic facilities. Homosexual men and women will be eligible to rent one bedroom Campus apartments in a Complex previously reserved for legally married  gis unhurt As Jet taxes off runway Romulus Mich apr an american air ones dc-10 carrying about 250 Middle East bound soldiers taxied off the runway at the Detroit metropolitan Airport after stopping for repairs a spokesman said wednesday. A1 Becker a spokesman at the airlines Dallas Headquarters said the plane got stuck in mud after one wheel went off the taxiway tuesday night. No injuries were reported. Becker said the soldiers and their equipment were transferred to which took off Early wednesday. The plane chartered by the civil Reserve air Fleet landed at the suburban Detroit Airport after a mechanical problem was detected in flight Becker said. He  identify the problem. Becker also  say where the flight originated or where the troops were from. Becker said the plane had been repaired and was taxiing for Takeoff when the Accident occurred. The cause was under investigation