Watch Live: Flat-Earth Rocket Livestream As Believer Launches Self-Made Rocket

A 61-year-old self-taught scientist plans to launch himself into the skies on Saturday in a homemade rocket -- to prove the Earth is flat -- canceled his plans. Lacking federal permits, as well as admitting to mechanical problems with his "motorhome/rocket launcher," forced the daredevil to put the project on hold.

"Mad" Mike Hughes, who’s also a limo driver in California, was expected to blast off in the rocket Saturday afternoon. He was set to live stream the event on his YouTube channel. Hughes hoped to prove to everyone, including government agencies and Space X CEO Elon Musk, that our planet is not round. But the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) told him that he couldn't perform the project at his intended location.

"It's been very disappointing," Hughes said.

The self-taught rocket scientist planned to launch over the ghost town of Amboy, California, in the Mojave Desert along Route 66. The rocket was intended to travel approximately a mile at about 500 mph.

I don't believe in science," Hughes told the Associated Press. "I know about aerodynamics and fluid dynamics and how things move through the air, about the certain size of rocket nozzles, and thrust. But that's not science, that's just a formula. There's no difference between science and science fiction."

While the endeavor had sounded dangerous, this isn’t the first time Hughes has launched a rocket. Back in 2014, he launched a rocket and made it up to 1,374 feet, but then shot back down.

The video below shows the stunt:

Hughes has spent $20,000 on his rocket project, which includes the cost for the mobile home he turned into a launch ramp. As a limo driver, Hughes doesn’t make much, so he started campaigns to fund his project. In 2016, he started a Kickstarter campaign, but only garnered $310 out of its $150,000 goal. He then started a GoFundMe campaign called “Flat Earth Community Rocket Launch,” which received $7,875 dollars, its intended goal. The second campaign was more successful, since it was geared towards those who don't believe the Earth is round.

“Knowing that NASA doesn't send anyone to space, Mad Mike could be one of the only people up in the air in a rocket,” the campaign said. “This is important we get behind him.”

He also looked for parts for the rocket. For example, he found the aluminum for the rocket on metal shops.

Hughes had planned to travel about a mile at an altitude of approximately 1,800 feet, and then pull the parachutes.

In the future Hughes plans to build a rocket that takes him to outer space — to take pictures and see with his own eyes that the Earth is flat. He also told the AP that he wants to run for governor of California.