Aweather satellite ormeteorological satellite is a type ofEarth observation satellite that is primarily used to monitor theweather andclimate of the Earth. Satellites are mainly of two types:polar orbiting (covering the entire Earth asynchronously) orgeostationary (hovering over the same spot on theequator).[1]
While primarily used to detect the development and movement of storm systems and other cloud patterns,meteorological satellites can also detect other phenomena such as city lights, fires, effects of pollution,auroras, sand anddust storms, tornadoes, snow cover, ice mapping, boundaries ofocean currents, and energy flows. Other types of environmental information are collected using weather satellites. Weather satellite images helped in monitoring the volcanic ash cloud fromMount St. Helens and activity from other volcanoes such asMount Etna.[2] Smoke fromfires in the western United States such asColorado andUtah have also been monitored.
El Niño and its effects on weather are monitored daily from satellite images. The Antarcticozone hole is mapped from weather satellite data. Collectively, weather satellites flown by the U.S., China, Europe, India, Russia, and Japan provide nearly continuous observations for a global weather watch.
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As early as 1946, the idea of cameras in orbit to observe the weather was being developed. This was due to sparse data observation coverage and the expense of using cloud cameras on rockets. By 1958, the early prototypes for TIROS and Vanguard (developed by theArmy Signal Corps) were created.[3] The first weather satellite,Vanguard 2, was launched on February 17, 1959.[4] It was designed to measure cloud cover and resistance, but a poor axis of rotation and its elliptical orbit kept it from collecting a notable amount of useful data. TheExplorer 6 andExplorer 7 satellites also contained weather-related experiments.[3]
The first weather satellite to be considered a success wasTIROS-1, launched by NASA on April 1, 1960.[5] TIROS operated for 78 days and proved to be much more successful than Vanguard 2. Other early weather satellite programs include the 1962 Defense Satellite Applications Program (DSAP)[6] and the 1964 SovietMeteor series.
TIROS paved the way for theNimbus program, whose technology and findings are the heritage of most of the Earth-observing satellites NASA and NOAA have launched since then. Beginning with theNimbus 3 satellite in 1969, temperature information through thetropospheric column began to be retrieved by satellites from the eastern Atlantic and most of the Pacific Ocean, which led to significant improvements toweather forecasts.[7]
The ESSA and NOAA polar orbiting satellites followed suit from the late 1960s onward. Geostationary satellites followed, beginning with theATS andSMS series in the late 1960s and early 1970s, then continuing with the GOES series from the 1970s onward. Polar orbiting satellites such asQuikScat andTRMM began to relay wind information near the ocean's surface starting in the late 1970s, with microwave imagery which resembled radar displays, which significantly improved the diagnoses oftropical cyclone strength, intensification, and location during the 2000s and 2010s.
In Europe, the firstMeteosatgeostationary operational meteorological satellite, Meteosat-1, was launched in 1977 on a Delta launch vehicle. The satellite was aspin-stabilised cylindrical design, 2.1 m in diameter and 3.2 m tall, rotating at approx. 100 rpm and carrying theMeteosat Visible and Infrared Imager (MVIRI) instrument. Successive Meteosat first generation satellites were launched, on European Ariane-4 launchers from Kourou in French Guyana, up to and including Meteosat-7 which acquired data from 1997 until 2017, operated initially by theEuropean Space Agency and later by theEuropean Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT).
Japan has launched nineHimawari satellites beginning in 1977.
Starting in 1988 China has launched twenty-oneFengyun satellites.
TheMeteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellites - also spin stabilised although physically larger and twice the mass of the first generation - were developed by ESA with European industry and in cooperation withEUMETSAT who then operate the satellites from their headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany with this same approach followed for all subsequent European meteorological satellites.Meteosat-8, the first MSG satellite, was launched in 2002 on anAriane-5 launcher, carrying theSpinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) andGeostationary Earth Radiation Budget (GERB) instruments, along with payloads to support theCOSPAS-SARSAT Search and Rescue (SAR) andARGOS Data Collection Platform (DCP) missions. SEVIRI provided an increased number of spectral channels over MVIRI and imaged the full-Earth disc at double the rate. Meteosat-9 was launched to complement Meteosat-8 in 2005, with the second pair consisting of Meteosat-10 and Meteosat-11 launched in 2012 and 2015, respectively.
In 2006, the first European low-Earth orbit operational meteorological satellite,Metop-A was launched into aSun-synchronous orbit at 817 km altitude by a Soyuz launcher from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. This operational satellite - which forms the space segment of theEUMETSAT Polar System (EPS) - built on the heritage from ESA'sERS andEnvisat experimental missions, and was followed at six-year intervals by Metop-B and Metop-C - the latter launched from French Guyana in a"Europeanised" Soyuz. Each carry thirteen different passive and active instruments ranging in design from imagers and sounders to a scatterometer and a radio-occultation instrument. The satellite service module is based on theSPOT-5 bus, while the payload suite is a combination of new and heritage instruments from both Europe and the US under the Initial Joint Polar System agreement between EUMETSAT and NOAA.
TheDSCOVR satellite, owned by NOAA, was launched in 2015 and became the first deep space satellite that can observe and predict space weather. It can detect potentially dangerous weather such assolar wind andgeomagnetic storms. This is what has given humanity the capability to make accurate and preemptive space weather forecasts since the late 2010s.[8]
TheMeteosat Third Generation (MTG) programme launched its first satellite, Meteosat-12, in 2022, and featured a number of changes over its predecessors in support of its mission to gather data for weather forecasting and climate monitoring. The MTG satellites are three-axis stabilised rather than spin stabilised, giving greater flexibility in satellite and instrument design. The MTG system features separate Imager and Sounder satellite models that share the same satellite bus, with a baseline of three satellites - two Imagers and one Sounder - forming the operational configuration. The imager satellites carry theFlexible Combined Imager (FCI), succeeding MVIRI and SEVIRI to give even greater resolution and spectral coverage, scanning the full Earth disc every ten minutes, as well as a new Lightning Imager (LI) payload. The sounder satellites carry the Infrared Sounder (IRS) and Ultra-violet Visible Near-infrared (UVN) instruments. UVN is part of theEuropean Commission'sCopernicus programme and fulfils theSentinel-4 mission to monitor air quality, trace gases and aerosols over Europe hourly at high spatial resolution. Two MTG satellites - one Imager and one Sounder - will operate in close proximity from the 0-deg geostationary location over western Africa to observe the eastern Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, while a second imager satellite will operate from 9.5-deg East to perform a Rapid Scanning mission over Europe. MTG continues Meteosat support to the ARGOS and Search and Rescue missions. MTG-I1 launched in one of the last Ariane-5 launches, with the subsequent satellites planned to launch inAriane-6 when it enters service.
A second generation of Metop satellites (MetOp-SG) is in advanced development with launch of the first satellite foreseen in 2025. As with MTG, Metop-SG will launch on Ariane-6 and comprise two satellite models to be operated in pairs in replacement of the single first generation satellites to continue the EPS mission.
Observation is typically made via different 'channels' of theelectromagnetic spectrum, in particular, thevisible andinfrared portions.
Some of these channels include:[9][10]
Visible-light images from weather satellites during local daylight hours are easy to interpret even by the average person, clouds, cloud systems such as fronts and tropical storms, lakes, forests, mountains, snow ice, fires, and pollution such as smoke, smog, dust and haze are readily apparent. Even wind can be determined by cloud patterns, alignments and movement from successive photos.[11]
Thethermal or infrared images recorded by sensors called scanningradiometers enable a trained analyst to determine cloud heights and types, to calculate land and surface water temperatures, and to locate ocean surface features.Infrared satellite imagery can be used effectively fortropical cyclones with a visibleeye pattern, using theDvorak technique, where the difference between the temperature of the warm eye and the surrounding cold cloud tops can be used to determine its intensity (colder cloud tops generally indicate a more intense storm).[12] Infrared pictures depict ocean eddies or vortices and map currents such as the Gulf Stream which are valuable to the shipping industry.Fishermen and farmers are interested in knowing land and water temperatures to protect their crops against frost or increase their catch from the sea. Even El Niño phenomena can be spotted. Using color-digitized techniques, the gray shadedthermal images can be converted to color for easier identification of desired information.
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Each meteorological satellite is designed to use one of two different classes of orbit:geostationary andpolar orbiting.
Geostationary weather satellites orbit the Earth above theequator at altitudes of 35,880 km (22,300 miles). Because of thisorbit, they remain stationary with respect to the rotating Earth and thus can record or transmit images of the entire hemisphere below continuously with their visible-light and infrared sensors. The news media use the geostationary photos in their daily weather presentation as single images or made into movie loops. These are also available on the city forecast pages of www.noaa.gov (example Dallas, TX).[13]
Several geostationary meteorological spacecraft are in operation. The United States'GOES series has three in operation:GOES-15,GOES-16 andGOES-17. GOES-16 and-17 remain stationary over the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, respectively.[14] GOES-15 was retired in early July 2019.[15]
The satelliteGOES 13 that was previously owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) was transferred to theU.S. Space Force in 2019 and renamed the EWS-G1; becoming the first geostationary weather satellite to be owned and operated by the U.S. Department of Defense.[16]
Russia's new-generation weather satelliteElektro-L No.1 operates at 76°E over the Indian Ocean. The Japanese have theMTSAT-2 located over the mid Pacific at 145°E and theHimawari 8 at 140°E. The Europeans have four in operation,Meteosat-8 (41.5°E) and Meteosat-9 (0°) over the Atlantic Ocean and have Meteosat-6 (63°E) and Meteosat-7 (57.5°E) over the Indian Ocean. China currently has fourFengyun (风云) geostationary satellites (FY-2E at 86.5°E, FY-2F at 123.5°E, FY-2G at 105°E and FY-4A at 104.5 °E) operated.[17]India also operates geostationary satellites calledINSAT which carry instruments for meteorological purposes.
Polar orbiting weather satellites circle the Earth at a typical altitude of 850 km (530 miles) in a north to south (or vice versa) path, passing over the poles in their continuous flight. Polar orbiting weather satellites are insun-synchronous orbits, which means they are able to observe any place on Earth and will view every location twice each day with the same general lighting conditions due to the near-constant localsolar time. Polar orbiting weather satellites offer a much better resolution than their geostationary counterparts due their closeness to the Earth.
The United States has theNOAA series of polar orbiting meteorological satellites, presently NOAA-15, NOAA-18 and NOAA-19 (POES) and NOAA-20 and NOAA-21 (JPSS). Europe has theMetop-A,Metop-B andMetop-C satellites operated byEUMETSAT. Russia has theMeteor and RESURS series of satellites. China hasFY-3A, 3B and 3C. India has polar orbiting satellites as well.
TheUnited States Department of Defense's Meteorological Satellite (DMSP) can "see" the best of all weather vehicles with its ability to detect objects almost as 'small' as a hugeoil tanker. In addition, of all the weather satellites in orbit, only DMSP can "see" at night in the visual. Some of the most spectacular photos have been recorded by the night visual sensor; city lights,volcanoes, fires, lightning,meteors, oil field burn-offs, as well as theAurora Borealis andAurora Australis have been captured by this 720 kilometres (450 mi) high space vehicle's low moonlight sensor.
At the same time, energy use and city growth can be monitored since both major and even minor cities, as well as highway lights, are conspicuous. This informsastronomers oflight pollution. TheNew York City Blackout of 1977 was captured by one of the night orbiter DMSP space vehicles.
In addition to monitoring city lights, these photos are a life saving asset in the detection and monitoring of fires. Not only do the satellites see the fires visually day and night, but the thermal andinfrared scanners on board these weather satellites detect potential fire sources below the surface of the Earth where smoldering occurs. Once the fire is detected, the same weather satellites provide vital information about wind that could fan or spread the fires. These same cloud photos from space tell thefirefighter when it will rain.
Some of the most dramatic photos showed the 600Kuwaiti oil fires that the fleeingArmy of Iraq started on February 23, 1991. The night photos showed huge flashes, far outstripping the glow of large populated areas. The fires consumed huge quantities of oil; the last was doused on November 6, 1991.
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Snowfield monitoring, especially in theSierra Nevada, can be helpful to the hydrologist keeping track of availablesnowpack for runoff vital to thewatersheds of the western United States. This information is gleaned from existing satellites of all agencies of the U.S. government (in addition to local, on-the-ground measurements). Ice floes, packs, and bergs can also be located and tracked from weather spacecraft.
Even pollution whether it is nature-made or human-made can be pinpointed. The visual and infrared photos show effects of pollution from their respective areas over the entire earth. Aircraft androcket pollution, as well ascondensation trails, can also be spotted. The ocean current and low level wind information gleaned from the space photos can help predict oceanic oil spill coverage and movement. Almost every summer, sand and dust from theSahara Desert in Africa drifts across the equatorial regions of the Atlantic Ocean. GOES-EAST photos enable meteorologists to observe, track and forecast this sand cloud. In addition to reducing visibilities and causing respiratory problems, sand clouds suppresshurricane formation by modifying thesolar radiation balance of the tropics. Otherdust storms in Asia andmainland China are common and easy to spot and monitor, with recent examples of dust moving across the Pacific Ocean and reaching North America.
In remote areas of the world with few local observers, fires could rage out of control for days or even weeks and consume huge areas before authorities are alerted. Weather satellites can be a valuable asset in such situations. Nighttime photos also show the burn-off in gas and oil fields. Atmospheric temperature and moisture profiles have been taken by weather satellites since 1969.[18]
Not all weather satellites are directimagers. Some satellites aresounders that take measurements of a singlepixel at a time. They have nohorizontalspatial resolution but often are capable or resolving verticalatmospheric layers. Soundings along the satelliteground track can still begridded later to formmaps.
According to theInternational Telecommunication Union (ITU), a meteorological-satellite service (also:meteorological-satellite radiocommunication service) is – according toArticle 1.52 of theITU Radio Regulations (RR)[19] – defined as« Anearth exploration-satellite service formeteorological purposes.»
Thisradiocommunication service is classified in accordance withITU Radio Regulations (article 1) as follows:
Fixed service (article 1.20)
The allocation of radio frequencies is provided according toArticle 5 of the ITU Radio Regulations (edition 2012).[20]
In order to improve harmonisation in spectrum utilisation, the majority of service-allocations stipulated in this document were incorporated in national Tables of Frequency Allocations and Utilisations which is with-in the responsibility of the appropriate national administration. The allocation might be primary, secondary, exclusive, and shared.
| Allocation to services | ||
| Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 3 |
401-402 MHz METEOROLOGICAL AIDS
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8 817.50-8 821.50 MHzMETEOROLOGICAL-SATELLITE (Earth-to-space)
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