Ground system issue scrubs first launch of SpaceX's Starship V3 rocket

Key points

• SpaceX got within 40 seconds of launching the first flight of a taller, more powerful version of its Starship rocket Thursday, but a pesky problem with the launch tower kept the vehicle bound to Earth for at least one more day.
• Clouds and rain showers cleared the area around SpaceX’s launch site in South Texas, leaving mostly sunny skies over the Starship launch pad Thursday afternoon.
• SpaceX pushed back the launch time by one hour, but the countdown appeared to proceed smoothly once propellants began loading into the rocket.
• That was true, at least, until the countdown clock paused 40 seconds before liftoff.
• The launch team repeatedly attempted to resume the countdown, only for the computer controlling the launch sequence to stop the clock again.