The Deep Space Atomic Clock by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a technology demo aimed at self-flying spacecraft.
Barely the size of a toaster oven, the clock is meant to help spacecraft navigate by themselves when far from Earth. The Deep Space Atomic Clock will launch tonight on SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket alongside 24 research satellites, a solar sail, a clean and green rocket fuel and even human ashes.
If you’d like to watch the live stream of the Deep Space Atomic Clock leaving earth, you can catch NASA’s live stream here. The Falcon Heavy Rocket will launch around 8:30 P.M. PST/11:30 P.M. EST from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
With files from the Associated Press
With guest host Libby Denkmann.
Guest:
Jill Seubert, deputy principal investigator for NASA's Deep Space Atomic Clock, a GPS-like device for space navigation