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I’VE GOT SOME BREAKING WEATHER NEWS TO BRING YOU --

Our future forecast is looking bright and clear!
That’s because the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has just launched a game-changing new weather satellite.
It’s called the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R, but, thankfully, it has a nickname: GOES-R.

It hitched a ride to space on one of NASA’s rockets a couple weeks ago – and, once it’s operational, it’ll monitor the weather here on earth in near real time – and its data will be more advanced than ever before, allowing meteorologists to zoom in to see greater detail so they catch severe weather sooner.

GOES-R is also tricked out with a Geostationary Lightning Mapper – that means it can see lightning from space – even if the lightning is hiding in clouds. Because lightning is usually a sign of a tornado, GOES-R will be able to predict tornados well before they strike.

But don’t think our friend GOES-R is just interested in Earth – this satellite will also be measuring space weather – that’s right, space has weather too – it mostly comes from the sun. Explosions on the sun’s surface can cause solar storms. They’re not usually a threat to us, but they’re definitely a threat to the satellites we rely on for communication. GOES-R monitors flare-ups on the sun to keep our satellites safe.

So look up and wave at our newest weather satellite – it’s up there keeping an eye on things, so we stay safe.

Instructional Links

Website Article: NASA, GOES-R Weather Satellite Ready For Launch

Interactive Maps: NASA Earth Science Office, Interactive Global Geostationary Weather Satellite Images

Video: PBSKids, SciGirls, Sky Girls

Online Reference Book: Science Online, Weather Satellite