KSC-2013-1309

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Ice crystals sparkle in the spotlights on Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida as they fall away from a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket lifting off at 8:48 p.m. EST to place NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-K, TDRS-K, in orbit. The ice forms on the rocket's fuel tank before launch, a byproduct of its super-cold propellants. The TDRS-K spacecraft is part of the next-generation series in the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System, a constellation of space-based communication satellites providing tracking, telemetry, command and high-bandwidth data return services. For more information, visit http:__www.nasa.gov_mission_pages_tdrs_index.html. Photo credit: NASA_George Roberts