SpaceX postponed the first test flight of Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, designed to send astronauts to the Moon, Mars, and beyond, on Monday.
According to AFP, the giant rocket’s liftoff was called off just minutes before the scheduled launch time due to a pressurization problem in the booster stage, according to SpaceX officials.
SpaceX has stated that the launch will be delayed for at least 48 hours.
Starship was supposed to take off from Starbase, SpaceX’s spaceport in Boca Chica, Texas, at 8:20 a.m. Central Time (1320 GMT).
NASA has chosen the Starship spacecraft to ferry astronauts to the Moon in late 2025 — a mission known as Artemis III — for the first time since the Apollo program ended in 1972.
Starship is made up of a 164-foot (50-meter) tall spacecraft designed to carry crew and cargo that sits atop a 230-foot tall first-stage Super Heavy booster rocket.
The flight was canceled due to a pressurization issue with the Super Heavy booster, according to SpaceX officials.