SpaceX’s planned test flight for the Starship mega rocket was postponed on Monday after last-minute technical issues arose. The countdown, which had reached the 40-second mark, was halted due to a problem with the 123-meter rocket, the largest and most powerful in the world.
“Standing down from today’s flight test attempt. Starship team is determining the next best available opportunity to fly,” SpaceX wrote in a social media post.
The rocket, which was set to launch from the southern tip of Texas, was carrying four mock satellites for a space-skimming test flight. If the issues can be resolved quickly, SpaceX is considering another attempt as early as Tuesday.
The delay follows a previous Starship test flight in January, which ended in an explosion over the Atlantic Ocean, with flaming debris falling over the Turks and Caicos.
Starship is already contracted by NASA for astronaut moon landings later in the decade, and Elon Musk’s long-term vision includes using the massive rockets to facilitate human settlement on Mars.
