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Tracing five decades of weather and space monitoring through NASA's GOES
NASA’s GOES satellites have provided 50 years of continuous geostationary monitoring, delivering real-time weather, environmental hazard, and space weather data to support forecasts, emergency response, and public safety.
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The NASA logo is displayed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on October 15, 2025 in La Cañada Flintridge, California. Around 550 people, or over ten percent of the famed lab’s workforce, are being laid off as part of an ongoing reorganization following two rounds of large layoffs last year. Layoffs at the laboratory, which is funded by NASA and managed by CalTech, are not related to the federal government shutdown (Image via Getty)Since 1975, NASA and NOAA have not stopped the geostationary imaging of the Earth through the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) program.
Satellites in the GOES program have given the Western Hemisphere real-time surveillance of weather, environmental threats, and space weather.
The program was made possible by previously conducted NASA missions, such as the Applications Technology Satellite (ATS) series and the Synchronous
Meteorological Satellite (SMS) program, which were aimed at experimenting with geostationary observation technologies and instruments like spin-scan cameras and imaging radiometers.
Through the years, GOES has gone through a lot of transformations with the advancing technology and has been able to expand the area and accuracy of Earth and space monitoring.
Heritage Missions: ATS and SMS
The GOES program traces its heritage to the ATS series launched from 1966 to 1974.
These satellites tested communications and meteorological technologies in geosynchronous orbit, including the spin-scan camera developed by the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Space Science and Engineering Center.
ATS-6 implemented a direct broadcast system for educational purposes and transmitted meteorological data.
Analysis of ATS imagery contributed to tornado studies and the monitoring of hurricane life cycles.
The SMS program followed, with SMS-1 and SMS-2 launched in 1974 and 1975, respectively.
SMS satellites operated in geostationary orbit and carried the Visible and Infrared Spin-Scan Radiometer (VISSR) to provide continuous meteorological observations over fixed Earth locations.
First and Second Generations: GOES 1–7
GOES-1 launched in 1975, marking the start of operational geostationary weather monitoring.
The first-generation satellites were spin-stabilized and carried VISSR instruments for day and night observations of clouds, surface temperatures, and wind fields.
A Space Environment Monitor measured solar and magnetic conditions. Early GOES data supported hurricane monitoring, including Tropical Storm Claudette and Hurricane David in 1979.
The second generation of the satellites, specifically GOES-4 through GOES-7, which were launched starting in the year 1980, made use of the VISSR Atmospheric Sounder (VAS) in order to deliver vertical profiles of temperature and moisture.
The VAS system allowed the monitoring of weather events that were changing in quick succession and, thus, made severe storm tracking easier and more accurate.
GOES-7 was the first satellite to come with an additional feature of Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking (SARSAT), which was capable of spotting emergency beacon signals and thus making rescues easier.
The data from these satellites were used in the study of the 1982-1983 El Niño, Hurricane Juan in 1985, and Hurricane Hugo in 1989, amongst others.
Third and Fourth Generations: GOES 8–15
GOES-8 was the first satellite to use the new three-axis stabilization developed, and it was invented to take photos and measure the temperature of the same spot at the same time because of the separate imager and sounder instruments it was using.
Its flexible scanning method made it possible to keep an eye on slowly developing events in specific areas. In 2001, GOES-12 launched a solar X-ray imager along with other instruments, which helped in monitoring the atmosphere around the Earth.
The fourth generation was represented by GOES-13 through GOES-15, which included not only improved navigation and registration systems but also, besides enhanced batteries, an Extreme Ultraviolet Sensor for measuring solar impacts on orbit drag and paths of communications.
These satellites continuously image weather phenomena like tornadoes and hurricanes.
GOES-R Series: GOES 16–19
The GOES-R series, which started with GOES-16 in 2016, introduced two major instruments: the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) and the Geostationary Lightning Mapper.
The series gave ten-minute full-disk images, five-minute regional images, and 30-60 seconds high-resolution localized images.
Tracking of hurricanes and rapid storm intensification and high-frequency fire monitoring were among the capabilities that had been supported by the GOES-R satellites carrying solar and space weather monitoring instruments, including NOAA's very first compact coronagraph on GOES-19.
Future Plans: GeoXO
The GeoXO concept, developed by NASA, NOAA, and industry partners, is a series of satellites that will be placed in geostationary orbit and will monitor Earth's environment continuously until the mid-century.
GeoXO will be a continuity of observation, providing a wider focus on severe weather, environmental hazards, and space weather monitoring. The first launch is scheduled for the early 2030s.
Stay tuned for more updates.
TOPICS: GOES satellites, Geostationary environmental observation, NASA weather monitoring, Severe storm forecasting, Space weather tracking