Bent radiator hose discovered

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After a kinked radiator hose was found on Discovery, NASA engineers opened the payload bay doors and found the same kinked flexible hose on Atlantis, which is at the launch pad nearly ready for a Feb. 7 launch to the International Space Station.

"It's supposed to be straight," NASA spokesman Allard Beutel said.

An engineering team is working to determine whether the bent hose poses a danger of leaking. The hose apparently has flown several times before being discovered, said Beutel.

Engineers are concerned that the kinked hose could leak during the mission, taking out a freon coolant loop, which cools the orbiter once the payload doors are closed before re-entry. The system containing the hose, 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter, could be isolated if it leaked during a mission, said Beutel.

"No leaks were seen," said Beutel, who added that the team would determine whether the hose needed to be replaced.

The issue certainly will come up at today's Executive Flight Readiness Review now going on. Other issues at the FRR include confirming the Feb. 7 launch date, and confirming a three of four working launch criteria for low-fuel sensors, which have been plagued by intermittent signals.