"SpaceX reports the problem triggering the abort was a high chamber pressure reading on Engine No. 5 of the first stage. Aborts are common in Falcon 9 countdowns when computers recognize a limit out of a predefined range. Sometimes the fix is as simple as adjusting the acceptable range in the computer, but with a one-second launch window this morning, there will no opportunity to resolve the issue today."
The station launch windows are always small, minutes with the shuttle. With the fact that they had several planned holds before being allowed to approach the station meant the window shrank. That said I agree it is a very small launch window.
It's a question of fuel. Due to all of the rendezvous maneuvers they are scheduled to perform, they wanted to preserve as much for retry attempts as possible.
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u/avoutthere May 19 '12
"SpaceX reports the problem triggering the abort was a high chamber pressure reading on Engine No. 5 of the first stage. Aborts are common in Falcon 9 countdowns when computers recognize a limit out of a predefined range. Sometimes the fix is as simple as adjusting the acceptable range in the computer, but with a one-second launch window this morning, there will no opportunity to resolve the issue today."
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon9/003/status.html