SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, United States (AFP) — Elon Musk’s SpaceX will attempt another launch of its mammoth Starship rocket Friday, after the previous evening’s try was called off over technical issues.

“Counting down to our second launch attempt,” the company posted on X, adding that the weather was 85 per cent favourable for flight during the 90-minute test window that kicks off at 5:30 pm local time (2230 GMT).

The highly anticipated launch will see the debut of SpaceX’s third-generation model of Starship, and it falls amid high stakes for the space company eyeing a buzzy initial public offering as soon as next month.