Elon Musk's SpaceX launch of the rocket Falcon 9 was aborted at the last moment from Cape Canaveral after a cruise ship ventured under the planned flight trajectory near the hazard area. SpaceX was set to fire a Falcon 9 rocket into orbit on Sunday at 6:11 p.m, but the US Coast Guard could not clear a cruise ship in time out of the rocket’s downrange hazard area. The launch was called off in the countdown at T-minus 33 seconds, and SpaceX’s launch team will attempt again on Monday.
Authorities did not say which cruise ship caused the delay. Cruise liners from Royal Caribbean and MSC Cruises departed Port Canaveral Sunday evening. Port Canaveral is located just south of Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. SpaceX identified the ship only as a "cruise ship" and, as of Sunday night, neither the Coast Guard nor Port Canaveral had responded to inquiries. Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas and MSC Cruises' Meraviglia were the two cruise ships scheduled to sail from Port Canaveral on Sunday.
Standing down from today's launch of COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation FM2 due to ship in the hazard area; team is setting up for next opportunity tomorrow, January 31 at 6:11 p.m. EST
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) January 30, 2022
The last-minute hold marked the fourth delay for SpaceX’s mission to launch Italy’s newest COSMO-SkyMed radar remote sensing satellite. Bad weather prevented the Falcon 9 from taking off Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
