Geostationary Satellites | NESDIS | National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service
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Geostationary Satellites
NOAA's GOES-R Series
NOAA’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES)–R Series is the Western Hemisphere’s most sophisticated weather-observing and environmental-monitoring system. The GOES-R Series provides advanced imagery and atmospheric measurements, real-time mapping of lightning activity, and monitoring of space weather.
Earth in High-Definition
Earth
GOES-R Series Mission
GOES satellites orbit 22,236 miles above Earth’s equator, at speeds equal to the Earth's rotation. This allows them to maintain their positions over specific geographic regions so they can provide continuous coverage of that area over time.
The GOES-R series of satellites, designated with a letter during development and renamed with a number after reaching geostationary orbit, have transformed NOAA’s geostationary weather monitoring capabilities.
GOES-U (now GOES-19) was launched in 2024 and operates as NOAA’s GOES East satellite, while GOES-T (now GOES-18), was launched in 2022 and is NOAA’s operational GOES West satellite. GOES-R (now GOES-16), launched in 2016, and GOES-S (now GOES-17) launched in 2018, both serve as on-orbit backups.
Together, GOES East and GOES West watch over more than half the globe — from the west coast of Africa to New Zealand and from near the Arctic Circle to the Antarctic Circle.
The GOES-R Program is a collaborative effort between NOAA and NASA. NASA builds and launches the satellites for NOAA, which operates them and distributes their data to users worldwide.
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Monitoring Weather on Earth and in Space
The GOES-R Series imager scans the Earth five times faster with four times the resolution and three times the number of channels than previous GOES for more accurate and reliable forecasts and severe weather warnings. The imager provides images of weather patterns, hurricanes and severe storms as frequently as every 30 seconds.
GOES-R Series satellites carry the first operational lightning mapper flown in geostationary orbit, which measures both in-cloud and cloud-to-ground lightning. Developing severe storms often exhibit a significant increase in total lightning activity, and data from the GOES-R Series lightning mapper, has great potential to increase lead time for severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings.
The GOES-R Series also hosts a suite of instruments that improve detection of approaching space weather hazards such as disruption of power utilities and communication and navigation systems and radiation damage to orbiting satellites. The instruments provide advanced imaging of the sun and detection of solar eruptions as well as more accurate monitoring of energetic particles and magnetic field variations associated with space weather.
Benefits
The GOES-R Series provides critical atmospheric, hydrologic, oceanic, climatic, solar and space data, significantly improving detection and observation of environmental phenomena that directly affect public safety, protection of property, and our nation’s economic health and prosperity:
Improved hurricane track and intensity forecasts
Increased thunderstorm and tornado warning lead time
Earlier warning of lightning ground strike hazards
Better detection of heavy rainfall and flash flood risks
Better monitoring of smoke and dust
Improved air quality warnings and alerts
Better fire detection and intensity estimation
Improved detection of low clouds and fog
Improved transportation safety and aviation route planning
Improved warning for communications and navigation disruptions and power blackouts
More accurate monitoring of energetic particles responsible for radiation hazards
Other Resources
Spacecraft & Instruments
Spacecraft & Instruments
Spacecraft & Instruments
Launch Vehicle
Launch Vehicle
Launch Vehicle
Geostationary Satellite Videos & Animations
Geostationary Satellite Videos & Animations
Geostationary Satellite Videos & Animations
Fact Sheets
Fact Sheets
Fact Sheets
GOES-R Series Data Products
View Products
GOES-R Series Data Products
GOES-R Logos
GOES-R Logos
GOES-R Logos
Print Resources
Print Resources
Print Resources
50 Years of GOES
50 Years!
50 Years of GOES
Schedules, Transitions, and Operations
GOES Schedules and Scan Sectors
View GOES Schedule
GOES Schedules and Scan Sectors
GOES Eclipse Schedule
View GOES Eclipse Schedule
GOES Eclipse Schedule
GOES-R Series Transition to Operations
View Transition
GOES-R Series Transition to Operations
GOES-R Mesoscale Domain Sector Request Form
View Form
GOES-R Mesoscale Domain Sector Request Form
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Office of Geostationary Earth Orbit Observations