SpaceX scrubs Starship launch due to technical issues

LOS ANGELES, March 4 — U.S. private space company SpaceX scrubbed the eighth launch of its powerful Starship rocket on Monday due to technical issues.

The launch was scheduled for 5:45 p.m. Central Time (1145 GMT) from the company's Starbase facility near Brownsville in the U.S. state of Texas.

However, the countdown was paused at T-40 seconds and remained on hold for several minutes before SpaceX ultimately decided to stand down.

The company later confirmed that the team is assessing the next available opportunity for the flight test.

The eighth flight test will target objectives not reached on the previous test, including Starship's first payload deployment, multiple reentry experiments geared towards returning the upper stage to the launch site for catch, and the launch, return and catch of the Super Heavy booster, according to SpaceX.

SpaceX's Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket, collectively referred to as Starship, represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond.