KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — One of space shuttle Columbia's main engines may have been leaking hydrogen fuel all the way to orbit and could have shut down abruptly if more fuel had seeped out, resulting in a never-before-attempted emergency landing, NASA said Sunday.
If it proves to be a leak, as photographs suggest, the possible engine shutdown could have caused an emergency landing within minutes of launch, either in Florida or West Africa.
Columbia made it safely to orbit Friday under the control of Air Force Col. Eileen Collins, the first woman to command a U.S. spaceship.
The shuttle, carrying five astronauts and the world's biggest and most powerful X-ray telescope, fell seven miles short of its intended orbit. A fuel leak could explain why the engines shut down one second or so early.