The Navy has approved a new rescue aid created by Rescue Technologies of Hawaii. The $40 device comes packed (1.5 x 2 x 7.5 inches) to be carried on a survival vest, but quickly unrolls to form a 6-inch by 25-foot orange streamer that will float on the surface of the water indefinitely. Tests have shown that the orange streamer is much easier to spot than the head and shoulders of a downed pilot bobbing among the whitecaps. Larger streamers are available to clip to life rafts, and all of the streamers will work equally well on land. For covert operations, a type that is visible only under infrared light is available. --Stephen V Cole