Atlantic Ocean

When he spotted the Spirit of Butts Farm soaring high above the rocky coast of Ireland, David Brown thought the 11-pound airplane was "the prettiest thing I'd ever seen." And for good reason. The Maryland-built, balsa-and-Mylar aircraft had just completed a journey no model had made before: an 1,888-mile cruise across the Atlantic Ocean, powered by less than a gallon of fuel. "In the model airplane world, this is no different from Armstrong landing on the moon," says Carl Layden, an official observer for the history-making flight.

The Spirit of St. Louis it ain't. But a plucky 11-pound model airplane built by a group of mostly retired Maryland engineers is poised to embark on a similarly record-breaking flight. Made of little more than balsa wood, Mylar and plastic foam, the Spirit of Butts Farm will attempt to pull off what no other craft its size has done: Make a nearly 2,000-mile trans-Atlantic hop from Newfoundland to Ireland. "I'm far less nervous than I'd thought I'd be," said Maynard Hill, the 76-year-old project leader, by telephone from St. John's in Newfoundland.

John Howard Bunting, a waterman and Coast Guard veteran who was once considered the dean of the mid-Atlantic headboat fishing fleet, died Saturday of congestive heart failure at his Ocean City home. He was 82 and had Parkinson's disease. Born in Ocean City, Mr. Bunting -- known as Captain Jack -- graduated from Ocean City High School in 1935 and enlisted in the Coast Guard at age 16. He served in the Coast Guard for 28 years before retiring as a chief warrant officer and going into the fishing business.

LEIDEN, Netherlands - To fade a pair of blue jeans used to take years of wear and tear or a washing machine full of pumice stones. Now, an enzyme found near a pink flamingo's mud nest in Kenya can do the job in minutes. Scientist Brian Jones made the discovery next to one of the thousands of raised mounds dotting a salt lake near the Rift Valley. The six-hour drive from Nairobi to a camp among water buffalo and crocodiles is one of many he's made in the search for new products for his employer, Genencor International Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif.

Annapolis sailor Chris Larson, tactician aboard Swedish entry ASSA ABLOY in the Volvo Ocean Race, will provide readers of The Sun periodic updates as the fleet heads for the United States. ABOARD ASSA ABLOY - From the Brazilian Basin 430 miles south of Recife, Brazil, in the Atlantic Ocean, we are sailing Leg 5 of the Volvo Ocean Race Round the World from Rio de Janeiro to Miami, and we're four days into the 18-day leg. Racing has been very competitive so far. After four days of upwind and close-reaching conditions, ASSA ABLOY, Tyco, and illbruck are neck and neck for the lead.

A MEMORABLE PLACE Of crabs and ice cream By Lisa Galvin Special to the Sun Jones Beach is a magical spot on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean where, if she strained hard enough, a young girl could imagine she saw the coast of England. Every summer, my family piled into our car and began the two-day trip from Pittsburgh, Pa., to my grandparents' home on Long Island. The drive was something that had to be endured to get the reward at the end: a two-week visit with my father's relatives in Levittown -- and trips to Jones Beach.

J. F. Rabardy Floyd, a retired aircraft and missile engineer, died Friday of complications of pneumonia at Howard County General Hospital. The Ellicott City resident was 85. For 38 years, he was an engineer at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, where he worked in missile design, shipboard missile systems, solid rocket development, launching systems and subsonic aerodynamics. Working in conjunction with the Navy, he helped design the Terrier anti-aircraft missile and the Triton missile system.

KINASARAM, Chad - This summer, an enormous cloud of reddish-brown dust swept across Florida, coating cars and patio furniture, causing respiratory problems for residents, and creating hazy skies and colorful sunsets. Scientists looking for a culprit found one - 6,000 miles away - at a drought-shriveled Central African lake. Powerful winds were kicking up dust from what was once the bottom of Lake Chad and carrying it across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean islands, the Bahamas and Florida.

More than any state in the nation, New Jersey has taken a stand against the invading tides. It has the most engineered beach in the country, its coastline bearing more scar tissue than any other shoreline. It has one of the nation's highest annual shore-protection budgets, $25 million, administered by the state's land-use agency, the Department of Environmental Protection. The state is so committed to shoring up its beaches that the department's commissioner, Robert Shinn -- who normally deals with preserving the environment, not shoring up expensive beachfront property -- has lobbied in Trenton and Washington for beachfill money.