A Lockheed L-1011 TriStar jet takes off with the Orbital Pegasus rocket (underneath it) at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

A small NASA telescope was launched into orbit on a mission to determine how the sun heats its atmosphere to millions of degrees, sending off rivers of particles that define the boundaries of the solar system.

The telescope was launched aboard an Orbital Sciences Corp Pegasus rocket.

The rocket was released from beneath the belly of the plane at an altitude of about 11,900 meters before it ignited to carry the telescope into orbit.

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