GOES satellites continuously monitor the atmosphere, observing many different weather phenomena. The data are used to create detailed weather maps that are distributed to meteorologists and other NOAA customers.
The GOES system is constantly evolving in response to new and emerging environmental needs. It is a massive undertaking of decadal scope, involving the development of new spacecraft and observation instruments, new operations procedures and algorithms, and the integration of the entire system with central processing and distributed direct user products.
As the nation celebrates the centennial of NOAA’s GOES program, this article traces the evolution of NOAA’s geostationary weather satellite systems and the important science they deliver to the country and world.
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GOES-T, which was renamed GOES-18 after reaching orbit, will replace NOAA’s aging GOES-17 as the operational GOES West satellite in early 2023 to track storm systems, lightning, wildfires, dense fog and other hazards that threaten the western United States. GOES-T is the first of NOAA’s next generation of geostationary weather satellites, called the GOES R Series.
NOAA’s GOES-16 is a geostationary weather satellite that provides critical information for forecasting extreme events and analyzing Earth’s climate. GOES-16 is operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); NASA helps develop and launch the satellite.
On March 10, GOES-16 experienced a power outage that affected its Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI). ABI has been restored and data flow is expected to be normal later today. NOAA will provide an update as more information becomes available.
During its time in space, GOES-17 has provided the weather community with remarkable imagery of natural and man-made events around our planet. It has tracked hurricanes across the Gulf of Mexico and into Texas, observed wildfires in the mountains of Colorado and New Mexico, and captured striking images of the Earth’s surface.
The GOES-13 satellite is part of NOAA’s international COSPAS-SARSAT search and rescue satellite-aided tracking (SARSAT) system, which detects signals transmitted by 406 MHz emergency beacons that are used by planes, ocean-going vessels and individuals in distress. GOES-13 is also the primary satellite that provides a continuous, real-time look at ocean surface temperature.
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