Connaught Biosciences accepts takeover offer

Engineer at Jet Propulsion Lab readies Galileo spacecraft for tests

tains much of its original chemical nature—unlike Earth and the other planets, which have lost much of their light constituents. Research­ers hope, thus, to gain greater un­derstanding of the solar system's origins. The planet is about 318 times the size of Earth and has at least 16 satellites. Current models picture a deep and dense atmo­sphere, primarily composed of hy­drogen and helium in about the same concentrations as in the Sun. A small, rocky core with the mass of a few Earths may exist at the center.

The orbiter carries 10 scientific instruments. They are a camera sys­tem, a near-infrared mapping spec­trometer, an ultraviolet spectrome­ter, a photopolarimeter radiometer, a magnetometer, a plasma instru­ment, an energetic-particle detec­tor, a plasma-wave instrument, a dust detection instrument, and ra­dio science instruments.

The probe bears six instruments: an atmospheric structure instrument, a neutral mass spectrometer, a heli­um abundance interferometer, a nephelometer, a net flux radiome­ter, and a lightning and radio emis­sion instrument.

Galileo has a "launch window" with a favorable conjunction of plan­ets lasting from Oct. 12 to Nov. 21. The next window will be in 1991.

Richard Seltzer

Connaught Biosciences Inc., Toron­to, a biotechnology company that produces mainly vaccines, has ac­cepted a takeover offer of $31.45 per share ($1.00 = $1.18 Canadian) from Institut Merieux, a biologicals company based in Lyons, France. Ciba-Geigy and Chiron Corp., in a joint venture , made an offer of $25.50 per share only two weeks ago. At that time, Institut Merieux and Connaught had already agreed on a merger. With the backing of Rhône-Poulenc, which owns 50.3% of Institut Merieux, the company was able to come up with the high­er cash offer.

Institut Merieux already owns 2.75 million shares of Connaught and will pay slightly more than $800 million for the remaining 21.9 mil­lion shares and additional securi­ties. A Merieux spokesman says the purchase debt will be reduced through a sale of up to 49% of the new company's shares. Combined 1988 sales of the two companies

exceeded $700 million. Ciba-Geigy, which owns 10% of Connaught, has not yet decided on its response to Merieux's offer.

Connaught was originally owned by the University of Toronto. It was sold in 1972 to Canada Develop­ment Corp., and later spun off as a public company. The university, currently involved in collaborative research projects with the compa­ny, has filed a suit against the firm, based on an agreement from 1972 that would block takeover by a for­eign buyer.

Institut Merieux will also have to fulfill several commitments required by the Canadian government. These include the construction of a $25 million to $35 million biotechnolo­gy R&D and production facility in Canada in the next five to seven years. Connaught 's Bio-Research Laboratories Ltd. and its 35.4% in­terest in Nordic Laboratories Inc. are expected to be sold.

Ann Thayer

Antarctic ozone depletion appears to be worsening Minimum total ozone south of 30° S, Dobson units 300

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New satellite data from the National Aeronautics & Space Administration show that stratospheric ozone above Antarctica is being destroyed at a rapid rate. The pattern of ozone depletion is very similar to 1987, the worst year to date.

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