weather satellites

4 Stories

'Impossible Satellite' Just Pulled Off a Big First

European Space Agency successfully steers defunct Aeolus to crash into the ocean

(Newser) - Aeolus was never designed to come back to Earth after its space mission. Now, however, the defunct weather satellite is home, after the European Space Agency successfully guided it to crash into the Atlantic Ocean—something that had never been done before, reports the Guardian . US Space Command confirmed that...

New Satellite Sends Back 'Jaw-Dropping' Images of Earth

GOES-16 lifted off from Cape Canaveral last November

(Newser) - GOES-16, the fancy new satellite developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is sending its first photos back to Earth since it lifted off from Cape Canaveral on Nov. 19, and the high-res results are causing astronomers and meteorologists to squeal with delight. One developer compared it to seeing...

Our Aging Weather Satellites Put Us at Risk

We almost went 'partly blind' just before Sandy hit: Jeffrey Kluger

(Newser) - With Hurricane Sandy upon us, it's time to take a hard look at our weather-predicting capabilities and the aging satellites that we depend on, writes Jeffrey Kluger in Time . Just last month—shortly before Sandy developed—one such satellite, dubbed GOES-East, began sending out a weak signal. NASA and...

Trouble Ahead: Weather Satellites in 'Rapid Decline'

Number will drop 'precipitously' by 2020

(Newser) - If you like to complain about the unreliability of the weather forecast, get ready to rant: The weather satellites orbiting the Earth are "beginning a rapid decline" in both quality and quantity, a new report finds, and squeezed budgets mean replacements may not be forthcoming. NASA and NOAA Earth...

4 Stories