SpaceX Launch Scrubs- Retry Next Tuesday
Saturday, May 19, 2012
By: Matthew Peddie

A launch abort has delayed the first attempt by a private company to fly a spacecraft to the International Space Station. A potential engine problem was detected moments before lift off.

With good weather and the International Space Station in position over Florida, the launch was in its final countdown.

But after a rumble and a brief flash of fire, the Dragon capsule atop its Falcon 9 rocket remained on the pad at Cape Canaveral.

Half a second before lift-off, a computer detected high chamber pressure in one of the rocket’s nine engines, forcing a shut down.

Technicians will examine the engine to try and find out what went wrong.

SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell says they'll try to fix the engine, but another option could be to replace the faulty engine with another one.

The next opportunity for launch is early Tuesday morning.