Elon Musk's SpaceX calls off Starship launch moments before lift-off

Company to announce new date for eighth test flight of rocket that will eventually send humans to the Moon and Mars

SpaceX called off the launch of its Starship deep-space rocket moments before lift-off on Tuesday because of technical issues, with a new date to be announced soon.

The company was attempting the eighth test flight of the hugely powerful rocket, after January's attempt ended in a fiery mid-air explosion, causing several commercial flights to be diverted.

Billionaire Elon Musk posted on X shortly after the postponement: "Too many question marks about this flight and then we were 20 bar low on ground spin start pressure. Best to destack, inspect both stages and try again in a day or two."

SpaceX said the Starship team was working to determine the next best available opportunity to fly.

Tuesday's attempt was made possible after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a launch licence to SpaceX, even though an investigation into the previous incident on January 17 has yet to conclude.

Then, several flights were diverted because of falling debris caused by the Starship explosion, with footage showing orange balls of light streaking across the sky over the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, accompanied by trails of smoke.

It was an important launch for SpaceX, which was aiming to test structural upgrades to the rocket and its ability to deploy payloads. It was carrying 10 mock Starlink satellites at the time.

Dr Sarath Raj, project director of the satellite ground station at Amity University in Dubai, told The National the eighth test flight will also test payloads, a crucial component in helping Starship start commercial operations.

“While earlier test flights were meant to focus on the vehicle’s ability to ascend, re-enter and descend in a controlled manner, this particular mission aims at verifying a key feature, that of deploying payloads,” he said. “Effective deployment would prove on record that Starship can indeed place satellites and other equipment on their designated orbits.

“This feature is imperative for various missions down the line, such as increasing the number of satellites on the Starlink constellation, scientifically notable objectives and, of course, transporting crew and cargo to the Moon and Mars.”

Mr Musk has said the failure during the last attempt was because of a propellant leak. “Preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure in excess of the vent capacity," he said a day after the botched test flight. “Nothing so far suggests pushing [the] next launch past next month.”

Unlike traditional aerospace companies, SpaceX has a strategy of rapid development, where it builds and tests rockets quickly, using flights to gather data and make improvements – as it did with its flagship rocket Falcon 9, which has a very high success rate.

The strategy has helped the company achieve several milestones in the development of Starship, including bringing the Super Heavy Booster and the spacecraft back safely, and catching the booster in mid-air using mechanical arms on a launch tower.

Mr Musk is stepping up his campaign to reach Mars and make humans a "multiplanetary species".

On February 20, he called for the International Space Station to be retired within “two years from now”. He added “let’s go to Mars”, reinforcing his long-standing vision of prioritising deep-space exploration, the reason for Starship's existence.

Nasa and its partners, including the European Space Agency, Canada, Japan and Russia, had already agreed to retire the station in 2030, with SpaceX awarded a contract by the US space agency to build a vehicle that would help the ISS deorbit safely.

Mr Musk has significant influence over the US administration through his leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), an advisory body conducting audits of federal organisations, including Nasa, and there is now uncertainty at the space agency over budget allocations and the future of its programmes, as Doge’s reviews could lead to funding cuts.

SpaceX will broadcast Starship's next attempted test fight live on its website and on the platform X.