Liftoff was scheduled for 4:55 am EST, but one of the rocket's engines experienced unusually high amounts of pressure. Once the pressure hit a certain level, SpaceX software took over and halted the procedure. SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell noted the issue appeared to be with the physical engine and was not a misread by any sensor or software. The iconic countdown actually reached zero, but SpaceX holds its rockets on the launch pad a few seconds after ignition to ensure everything is functioning (protocol that looks even smarter in light of this morning).

The next available launch window for SpaceX occurs this week: Tuesday at 3:44 am EST. Company founder Elon Musk indicated any tweaks would be made with that goal in mind so SpaceX would be prepared for "countdown in a few days."

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After being pushed back several times, the first launch of a private vehicle to the Internaltional Space Station (ISS) is now set for early tomorrow morning (based on the timezone where the launch will take place). The Dragon capsule is set on top of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, and the assemblage was raised to a vertical launch position overnight. If all goes well, the vehicle will be sent to low-Earth orbit at 4:55am EDT tomorrow morning. For those of you located overseas (or willing to wake up early in the morning), NASA will have live coverage available via NASA TV.

The Dragon capsule will only be carrying supplies on this mission—food, clothing, batteries, and a laptop, according to NASA. But the journey should give both the company and NASA the chance to test out the capsule's sensors and control systems as it approaches—and assuming all those check out—docks with the ISS. This will provide an essential validation of a system that is intended to ultimately carry astronauts on a similar journey. Dragon capsules are in the process of being certified for human use.

The launch window for reaching the ISS from a site in Florida is fairly narrow, so everything will have to go off without a significant hitch for the launch to take place. In other words, if you set your alarm that early and wind up with nothing to watch, don't blame us. We warned you.

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