Elon Musk's SpaceX postpones debut flight of Starship rocket system to space

Elon Musk's space company SpaceX on Monday postponed the debut flight of the Starship rocket due to last minute problem with the pressurisation system in the booster. The launch was scheduled to take place today from the company's Starbase in Texas. However, Musk in a tweet said: "A pressurant valve appears to be frozen, so unless it starts operating soon, no launch today." An hour before this, he had said the cryogenic propellant load of Starship was underway and the liftoff was expected in an hour. 

SpaceX said a minimum of 48 hours would be needed before making a second launch attempt. It cited 'pressurisation' issue in the lower-stage Super Heavy booster as the reason for scrubbing the launch.

Standing down from today’s flight test attempt; team is working towards next available opportunity

Starship is a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars, and beyond. It is the world's most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, capable of carrying up to 150 metric tonnes fully reusable and 250 metric tonnes expendable. 

Ahead of the launch, SpaceX said its team had completed multiple sub-orbital flight tests of Starship’s upper stage from Starbase, successfully demonstrating an unprecedented approach to controlled flight. 

"These flight tests helped validate the vehicle’s design, proving Starship can fly through the subsonic phase of entry before re-lighting its engines and flipping itself to a vertical configuration for landing," it said ahead of the launch of Starship.  

In addition to the testing of Starship's upper stage, SpaceX had conducted numerous tests of the Super Heavy rocket, which included the increasingly complex static fires that led to a full-duration 31 Raptor engine test – the largest number of simultaneous rocket engine ignitions in history. 

The team also constructed the world's tallest rocket launch and catch tower. "At 146 meters, or nearly 500 feet tall, the launch and catch tower is designed to support vehicle integration, launch, and catch of the Super Heavy rocket booster," it said, adding that for the first flight test, the team would not attempt a vertical landing of Starship or a catch of the Super Heavy booster.