The head of NASA's mission to the sun says it's hard to overstate the challenges ahead.

The American space agency has successfully launched a probe, that will go closer to the sun than any spacecraft has gone before.

READ MORE: NASA's Parker probe set for launch in its historic mission to the Sun

The craft will endure extreme heat, while zooming through the sun's outer atmosphere.

Mission head Justin Kasper told Mike Hosking they are trying do something previously thought impossible.

"We're going to get so close to the sun that it will be about 500 times brighter than it is on earth. It will be the fastest object ever made."

LISTEN ABOVE AS JUSTIN KASPER SPEAKS WITH MIKE HOSKING