First Image from GOES 12
August 21, 2001
Provided by: NOAA - OSEI
Summary authors & editors: NASA/GSFC
The nation's newest environmental satellite sent back its first image from space last Friday, confirming that the visible channel of the imager is working as expected. GOES-12, a geostationary weather satellite that takes images of clouds, measures temperature, reads the amount of moisture in the atmosphere, and monitors space weather, sent back a clear, crisp image from its vantage point 22,300 miles in space. The satellite was launched on July 23 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. GOES-12 will be stored in orbit and will replace either GOES-8 or GOES-10 as needed.
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages satellite design, development and launch, and on-orbit checkout of the GOES satellites for NOAA. NOAA's National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) operates the GOES series of satellites from its Suitland, Md., facility. After the satellites complete on-orbit checkout, NESDIS assumes responsibility for command and control, data receipt, and product generation and distribution. NESDIS is the nation's primary source of space-based meteorological and climate data. The NESDIS environmental satellites are used for weather forecasting, climate monitoring, and other environmental applications such as fire detection, ozone monitoring, and sea surface temperature measurements.
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