Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 1

1 "a Steinhatchee offers slice of nearby serenity. UNWIND, IF Big Squeeze continues celebration of citrus. SPACE COAST, IB SUNDAY, APRIL 4, 2004 BREVARD EDITION $1.50 FLORIDATODAY.com LPlLOMlD)A 1 4. 1 sTASA Spirit's trek spells I success Rovers expected to keep hunting water, surpass expected lifetime ani once was awash with water, a finding that achieved the main scientific goal of the project. And while NASA now can declare victory, the Spirit and Opportunity rovers still are chugging along, and it appears both will continue to do so for two or three months to come.

"We look forward to a long lifetime for both spacecraft at both sites," said Chris Lewicki, a Going strong Both Spirit and Opportunity are operating well. That could mean a lengthy extension of NASA's hunt for Martian water. flight director at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Launched from Cape Canaveral last June and July, re 90 days, meeting the prime mission success criteria for the nation's $820 million investment in the two robotic field geologists. The other rover on the red planet for 69 days now has uncovered conclusive evidence a Martian plain known as Meridi- BY TODD HALVORSON FLORIDA TODAY CAPE CANAVERAL Mission accomplished.

One of NASA's twin Mars rov-ers now has been traipsing around Gusev Crater for AN ENVIRONMENTAL Terrorist hunt ends in Mast JM i vo f'CuUj inn Madrid bomb suspects kill selves ISSUE? wherever it owns the bottom land. And local governments limit how long people can anchor on waterways in their jurisdictions. Marinas fed up with over-regulation and pesky livea-boards are giving up. "They're using every tool available," said Pat Phillips, who has spent the past four years living cozily crammed on board a 39-foot sailboat with his wife and two daughters. The state has stepped up enforcement and monitoring in the last few years because of an See LIVEABOARDS, 5A ASSOCIATED PRESS MADRID, Spain At least three suspects in the Madrid railway bombings blew themselves up Saturday as police prepared to storm their apartment.

One special forces agent was killed in the explosion and 15 police officers were wounded. The blast in Leganes, a southern suburb of Madrid, blew out part of the exterior walls on the first and second floors of the brick apartment building. Police approached the building about 7 p.m. to make arrests as part of an escalating manhunt for those responsible for the March 11 bombings that killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,800. Craig Rubadoux, FLORIDA TODAY All hands on deck.

Laurie and Pat Phillips with their daughter, Becca Rose, 8, relax aboard their sailboat, moored at the Eau Gallie Yacht Basin in Melbourne. The family of four, which also includes daughter Maria, 13, has lived aboard the boat for four years. Regulations menace liveaboard lifestyle Did you remember to set your clock aneaa one hour? Daylight- saving time began at a.m. today. INSIDE Georgia Tech stuns Oklahoma State The Yellow Jackets grab a 67-65 victory and head into the national title game, SPORTS, ID Mother acquitted in sons' stoning deaths A jury says a Texas woman who claimed God ordered her to bash in her children's heads was legally insane during the killings, NATION, 4A ON THE BACK Sunny skies today, highs around 77 Sunny today with highs around 77.

Overnight lows Av around 50, WEATHER, 12A The 5-Minute Read Your complete guide to news from around the world, nation, state and Space Coast, 12A NEXT LAUNCH" An International Launch Services Atlas rocket with a commercial communications satellite onboard April 15 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Launch window: 8:45 p.m. to 9:18 p.m. COMING UP Keep up with car maintenance Auto experts say the first step to keeping your car in tiptop shape is by reading the manual, ABOUT ME on Monday The latest Space Coast news: floridatoda) com Gannett Co. Inc.

INDEX Classified 1-12J Help! 3E Lottery. 12A, 10B News of record 5B Obituaries 8B Outdoors 10D Real Estate 1-14H Unwind 1-6F Weather 12A 1-18G vo ma spectively, the Spirit and Opportunity rovers beat long odds just gettingto Mars. Two-thirds of all previous missions had failed since Russia first attempted a 1 960 fly-by of the planet. The Spirit rover survived a high-anxiety dive through the Martian atmosphere on Jaa 3. Cocooned in protective airbags, the spacecraft bounced to a stop See SPIRIT, 6A The suspects spotted the police from a window and shot at them, chanting loudly in Arabic, Interior Minister Angel Acebes said.

During the next two hours, police evacuated as many people as they could from the building and surrounding area and prepared for an assault on the apartment, he said. "The special police agents prepared to storm the building and when they started to execute the plan, the terrorists set off a powerful explosion, blowing themselves up, "Acebes said. The investigation into the March 11 attacks have focused on the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, which has links to al-Qaida. has correctly recorded his or her votes," said David Dill, a computer science professor at Stanford University in California. "We are losing the ability to do meaningful recounts." Elections officials, though, say the machines are rigorously tested before they are put into service.

"Do I think the machines are accurate?" asked Indian River County's Kay Clem, president of the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections. "You bet I do. I'd bet my life on it." After 2000, Florida banned the use of punch-card voting systems and required the See VOTE, 3A VerifEye project. New light-scanning technology aims to ID deadly bacteria. 771771 AP Critics cautious of voting machines Ballots can't be reviewed later of being out on the hook," Breheny said.

"I grew up on boats. It's part of my heritage." That heritage, though, is being threatened by government regulation and coastal development, making it harder for the free spirits who live on their boats instead of in a house, condo or apartment to find their own Margaritaville. Developers are buying marinas and converting them into high-rise condominiums with private slips. The state is using its environmental regulations to limit how long people can anchor out or tie up to a slip Enforcement pushes marinas to shun boaters BY JEFF SCHWEERS FLORIDA TODAY David Breheny sailed to Melbourne 25 years ago as a teen with his father, on a 50-foot trimaran his father had built. Today, Breheny now 43 lives on his own trimaran, a 44-foot Cross anchored in the Intracoastal Waterway.

He wouldn't have it any other way. "I enjoy the peace and quiet FLOATING FREELY. Why some prefer a home on the sea, 5A I i Delinda Kamehm, FLORIDA TODAY Cruising the river. Many liveaboards, like David Breheny, make their home on the surface of the Indian River. Only a few Space Coast marinas welcome liveaboards for extended stays.

by john McCarthy florida today In the wake of the 2000 presidential election fiasco, Florida and every other state in the country rushed to replace antiquated voting systems. While the meaning of hanging chads isn't likely to be a focal point this November, critics say the newer voting systems have problems of their own. The biggest problem, they say, is the ATM-like machines that will be used by about half of Florida's voters this November don't have any paper ballots that can be reviewed after Election Day. "The voter has no way of checking whether that machine ways spread initially in fecal contamination. Using a specific light wavelength, the scanners cause a fluorescence in even minuscule amounts of fecal contamination that could carry dangerous bacteria like E.

coli; it shows up on a built-in display as a bright red spot on a person's dirty hand. "Nobody wants to have doo-doo on their burger," said Jacob Petrich, a biophysical chemist at Iowa State University who invented the meat-scanning technology with two scientists. Light scanner promises dirty-hand detection Sebastian company revamps slaughterhouse device carry deadly illnesses. A device the size of an electric hand dryer detects fecal contamination and pinpoints on a digital display where more scrubbing is needed. eMerge Interactive a technology company in Sebastian, hopes to tweak light scanners it already sells to beef plants to detect nasty germs on humans.

The blue-light scanners could ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON With just a flicker of blue light, little Johnny's mother one day may know for sure whether her son washed his hands before dinner. New light-scanning technology borrowed from the slaughterhouse promises to help hospital workers and restaurant employees make sure hand washing zaps some germs that can dramatically improve hygiene among employees who forget to wash their hands after bathroom breaks. Jim Mann, executive director of The Handwashing Leadership Forum, a group in Illinois that studies food-borne outbreaks, called the scanning technology promising but "not a silver bullet" because it cannot detect pathogens such as salmonella or viruses that do not al '4 loriaai lklYrCOn Breaking News Photo Galleries Multi-media Features and more Voted Florida's Best Newspaper Web site v..