NASA & NOAA set to launch environmental satellite

Erica Hupp/Dolores Beasley
Headquarters, Washington May 4, 2005
(Phone: 202/358-1237/1753)

Cynthia M. O'Carroll
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
(Phone: 301/286-4647)

John Leslie
NOAA Satellites & Information Service, Suitland, Md.
(Phone: 301/457-5005)

RELEASE: 05-117

NASA & NOAA SET TO LAUNCH NEW ENVIRONMENTAL SATELLITE

NASA is set to launch the new National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite
(POES), another critical link in the development of a global
Earth-observation program.

The spacecraft, NOAA-N, will lift off at 6:22 a.m. EDT, May 11, 2005, from
Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

"The NOAA-N satellite is key to establishing a strong Global Earth
Observation System of Systems, because it will strengthen our understanding
about what the environment around the world is doing, not just here in the
U.S.," said Gregory Withee, assistant administrator for NOAA's Satellite and
Information Service. "From monitoring the ash clouds of Mount St. Helens, to
bolstering the U.S. search and rescue network, NOAA-N will be the link in
our continued success," he added.

NOAA-N will replace NOAA-16, in operation since September 2000, and join
NOAA-17, launched in June 2002. Once in orbit, NOAA-N will be renamed
NOAA-18. NOAA maintains a constellation of two primary polar-orbiting
satellites. The global data from these satellites are used extensively in
NOAA's weather and climate prediction models.

"NASA is proud of our role in building and launching these satellites which
contribute to NOAA's vital mission of providing weather forecasts and
collecting environmental data about the Earth," said Karen Halterman, NASA
POES Project Manager, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

As it orbits the globe, NOAA-N will collect data about the Earth's surface
and atmosphere that are input for NOAA's long-range climate and seasonal
outlooks, including forecasts for El Nino and La Nina.

NOAA-N also has instruments used in the international Search and Rescue
Satellite-Aided Tracking System, called COSPAS-SARSAT, which was established
in 1982. NOAA polar-orbiting satellites detect emergency beacon distress
signals and relay their location to ground stations, so rescue can be
dispatched. SARSAT is credited with saving approximately 5,000 lives in the
U.S. and more than 18,000 worldwide.

NOAA-N is the fifteenth in a series of polar-orbiting satellites dating back
to 1978. NOAA-N has imaging and sounding capabilities that are broadcast
around the world and recorded on board for playback over NOAA ground
stations. There is one more satellite in this series scheduled for launch in
December 2007.

NOAA's next generation of polar spacecraft, the National Polar-Orbiting
Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), is planned for launch
in early 2010. NPOESS is a combined program with NOAA, the Department of
Defense and NASA.

NOAA manages the POES program and establishes requirements, provides all
funding and distributes environmental satellite data for the United States.
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center procures and manages the development and
launch of the satellites for NOAA on a cost-reimbursable basis.

Twenty-one days after the satellite is launched, NASA will transfer
operational control to NOAA. NASA's comprehensive on-orbit verification
period is expected to last approximately 45 days after launch.

For information about NASA, NOAA-N and polar orbiting satellites on the Web,
visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html

http://www.nasa.gov/noaa-n

http://goespoes.gsfc.nasa.gov

http://www.noaa.gov

http://nws.noaa.gov



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Jacques :-)

www.spacepatches.info