Image of the U.S. taken by the Suomi NPP. (NASA)
A polar-orbiting satellite employed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration retired yesterday after 11 years of service. This is more than three times the typical lifespan of these satellites.
Known as the NOAA-17 Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite, it measured air temperature, moisture, sea surface temperature, and image data that helped strengthen NOAA’s climate and weather models. In fact, these satellites provide up to80 percent of the data for the weather computer models we rely on every day. They are called polar-orbiters because they fly a lower orbit than others, from pole to pole. Mary Kicza, from NOAA’s Satellite and Information Service, explained how the data these satellites collect can help us find out more about our planet:
NOAA-17 helped our forecasters see the early development of severe weather from tornadoes and snow storms to hurricanes, including the busiest hurricane season on record — 2005. It also tracked subtle changes in the environment that signaled the onset of drought and wildfire conditions. NOAA-17’s long life is a credit to the engineers who built and operated it and the technology that sustained it. Although we say farewell to NOAA-17, we still operate a dependable fleet of satellites that continue to provide crucial data.
Number 17 was being used as backup for other soon-to-retire satellites (15, 16, 18, and 19). A newer satellite called Suomi NPP was launched in 2011 as the first step in the next generation of polar orbiters: the Joint Polar Satellite System. So the system will continue to operate after Number 17′s retirement party — for now. The next orbiter was planned to launch in 2015, but that will be pushed back to 2017, risking a gap in weather and climate monitoring. This critical satellite program has been orbiting by the seat of its pants for years.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/04/11/1849181/extreme-weather-and-us-satellites/
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