In the very last second before liftoff Sunday, SpaceX scrubbed the launch of its Falcon 9 rocket to send a communications satellite into orbit, marking the third delay since last week. A fuel problem forced the sudden delay, following a postponement - known as a hold - earlier in the evening due to a ship that ventured into the waters off Cape Canaveral, Florida, said SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
"Launch aborted on low thrust alarm. Rising oxygen temps due to hold for boat and helium bubble triggered alarm," Musk said on Twitter. The Falcon 9's engines are powered by liquid oxygen and kerosene. In June 2015, the Falcon 9 exploded some two minutes after launch, a failure that was blamed on a faulty strut that held helium bottles in place.
The ship moved away in time for a launch attempt, and the countdown went almost to ignition before it was cut off suddenly. "We were counting down, we got to just about T-0 when we had an abort," at 7:21 pm (0021 GMT) said SpaceX spokesman John Insprucker on the California-based company's live webcast.
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