Whilst SpaceX founder Elon Musk is often in the headlines for some questionable life choices, the company itself is set to launch a pretty historic rocket later today.

The Falcon Heavy, perhaps best known for sending a Tesla and Starman into orbit, will take to the skies for a third time, carrying a number of new technologies that could evolve into valuable tools for future space missions.

They will need to be tested against the harsh environment of Earth’s orbit first, and the launch itself is very complicated.

The Verge with the details:

A combination of 24 satellites will fly to space on this mission… [and] getting all of these satellites to their intended orbits won’t be easy.

The two dozen payloads need to be dropped off in three separate orbits, which means the Falcon Heavy will reignite its engine up to four times over the course of six hours to get the satellites where they need to go. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk claims that this complicated flight is the company’s “most difficult launch ever.”

The first technology we’ll mention is an atomic clock, which is about the same size as a regular toaster. Don’t be fooled, though, because it packs quite a punch:

This clock is more accurate than any personal clock here on Earth. While the clocks we use eventually speed up or slow down over time, this particular clock, named the Deep Space Atomic Clock, would take up to 10 million years to get off by one second…

NASA has been using mercury-based clocks for a while on the ground, but the devices were typically the size of refrigerators and too large to fit on spacecraft. Other smaller atomic clocks have been sent to space on GPS satellites before, but they work by measuring elements like cesium or rubidium. While precise, these eventually stop being accurate, as their atoms get lost over time…

The team behind the instrument hopes to turn it on in August and then see if it works as intended over the next year. If so, the mission could lead to the development of other super precise atomic clocks that could help spacecraft not only keep time, but also navigate through deep space.

A toaster-sized clock doesn’t seem like much to be excited about, but the fact that it could aid deep space exploration is damn nifty.

The second new technology involves a greener approach to orbiting the atmosphere:

Many of the spacecraft on the Falcon Heavy launch will need to maneuver once they’re in space, either to keep their positions stable or to head to higher orbits. Typically, the chemicals used for these small engines are all the same toxic materials. But one spacecraft heading to orbit next week will be testing out a “green” type of propellant that’s a lot more user-friendly.

It’s all part of NASA’s Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM). The vehicle will run on a new type of propellant developed by the US Air Force that’s meant to serve as an alternative to hydrazine, the current propellant of choice for most satellite engines. This new material could be an attractive option for satellite operators since hydrazine is particularly nasty stuff…

In contrast, the “green” propellant going up next week — hydroxylammonium nitrate — is much more palatable, with no noxious fumes.

This green propellant also comes with an added bonus of being more efficient for satellites since it’s much denser. You can get 50 percent more fuel in a satellite engine’s tank with it than you can with hydrazine…That could potentially allow a satellite to last much longer in orbit, as it will have more fuel over time to change position or make maneuvers.

Hurray for science.

The third technology will try and harness the power of the sun, and could have far-reaching implications for future space travel:

While NASA is testing out the green propellant, another organization will be testing out a way to propel spacecraft through the cosmos without using any fuel at all. Instead, it just needs light from the Sun.

The spacecraft is known as LightSail 2, and it’s the product of engineers at the Planetary Society, a nonprofit organization that advocates for space exploration. The vehicle is equipped with a very thin sail made out of mylar that’s designed to expand into a big square about the size of a boxing ring. This flat surface is meant to get pushed around by light coming from the Sun. Particles of light don’t have any mass, but they do carry momentum, which can cause very thin reflective materials to move through space.

If your head’s spinning a little, this video should do the trick:

Perhaps the music was overly dramatic, but it’s still worth getting excited about.

For the latest on the SpaceX launch taking place later today, check in here. Launch time is slated to be around 11:30PM in Florida, when the launch window opens, which is the early hours of the morning on Tuesday here in South Africa.

You can find details of the live streams available to watch the event here.

[source:verge]