* Astronomy

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RE: GOES-13

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On April 14, 2010, GOES-13 became the operational weather satellite for GOES-EAST, however it is currently non-operational due to an anomaly which occurred on 22 May 2013.
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NOAA Weather Satellite Fails at Outset of Hurricane Season Predicted to be Busy

A key satellite used in predicting severeweather in the eastern United States, including Atlantic hurricanes, has failed.
Last Tuesday evening, the imaging system on the weather satellite known as GOES-East ceased to transmit images.
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Boeing today announced that GOES-13 (GOES-N), the first of three Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) that will support more accurate prediction and tracking of severe storms and other weather phenomena, has completed on-orbit testing and has been accepted by NASA.

"Boeing has four decades of Earth observation satellite technology leadership. We are building three advanced GOES weather satellites for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to monitor land, sea, atmosphere and space to create a network-enabled data collection system that tracks Earth's changing systems. Spacecraft acceptance of GOES-N is the culmination of careful design and engineering, best-of-industry manufacturing and integration, and rigorous ground and on-orbit testing" - Stephen T. O'Neill, president of Boeing Satellite Systems International, Inc.

GOES-N, known today as "GOES 13," was launched on a Boeing Delta IV rocket on May 24. Successful spacecraft acceptance follows the on-schedule completion of a six-month, post-launch test program from the NOAA Satellite Operations Control Centre in Suitland, Md. Boeing advised NASA and NOAA engineers throughout the program.

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The NOAA GOES-13 satellite's onboard Solar X-ray Imager is experiencing an anomaly possibly related to the X9-flare of Dec. 5th. NOAA and NASA staff are investigating.

Source NASA

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ITT Corporation (NYSE: ITT) today announced the GOES-N satellite, in orbit 22,300 miles above the equator and carrying primary payload instruments produced by ITT's Space Systems Division, has transmitted its first visible and infrared (IR) images of Earth.

The GOES-N, now called GOES-13, is the latest in a series of Earth-monitoring Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites built for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It was launched on May 24 aboard a Boeing Delta IV rocket, reached orbit on May 31, and, after a period of testing, transmitted its initial visible image on June 22 and is now providing both visible and infrared images.
The GOES array of satellites monitors the Earth's atmosphere in visible and infrared wavelengths. By measuring moisture content and tracking weather systems, they provide data to meteorologists to help improve the accuracy of forecasts.
As a contractor to NASA on the GOES-N project, ITT built the imager and sounder that acquire the high-resolution visible and infrared data, as well as temperature and moisture profiles of the atmosphere.

"ITT is proud to be part of yet another successful GOES mission. ITT's imager and sounder aboard GOES-13 continually transmit data to ground terminals for processing and broadcasting to weather service offices through the Western Hemisphere" - Chris Young, President of the Space Systems Division.

The ITT imager and sounder provide two valuable features -- (1) flexible scan and (2) simultaneous and independent imaging and sounding.
Flexible scan offers small-scale area imaging that allows meteorologists to take pictures of local weather trouble spots in order to improve short-term forecasts over local areas. Simultaneous and independent imaging and sounding enhances forecast accuracy by providing multiple measurements of weather phenomena.
The imager senses radiant energy and reflected solar energy from the Earth's surface and atmosphere. It can detect changes in temperature and variations in low-level moisture, and it can track hurricanes from their earliest formation as a tropical wave. It allows meteorologists to issue warnings about high-velocity winds or winter storms well in advance of their occurrence.
The multi-spectral sounder uses sensors to collect and identify fluctuations within the Earth's atmosphere. These variations provide critically important data for computer models that help produce mid- and long- range forecasts.

Source

Blobrana · L

The Solar X-ray Imager (SXI) instrument, designed and built by Lockheed Martin at its Space Systems Advanced Technology Centre (ATC) has produced its first image of the Sun, as seen in soft x-rays.

SXI is one of a suite of instruments that resides on the current generation of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES).

"The first image is magnificent! There is enormous satisfaction in seeing that our years of effort have borne fruit. While the other GOES instruments provide near-constant viewing of the Earth, SXI will watch the Sun and provide vital information regarding solar activity" - Mons Morrison, SXI program manager at the ATC.

"Once it is fully operational, the SXI will capture sharp, detailed solar images for immediate use by space weather forecasters and also provide critical data for new numerical prediction models under development. By testing and calibrating the SXI in advance, we avoid a lapse in solar coverage during the transition from GOES 12 to GOES 13" - Tom Bogdan, director of NOAA's Space Environment Centre (SEC) in Boulder, Colorado, US.

The SXI will aid NOAA and U.S. Air Force personnel in issuing forecasts and alerts of "space weather" conditions, and in developing a better understanding of Sun-related phenomena that affect the Earth's environment.
Turbulent "space weather" can affect radio communication on Earth, induce currents in electric power grids and long distance pipelines, cause navigational errors in magnetic guidance systems, upset satellite circuitry and expose astronauts to increased radiation.

A prototype SXI was developed, tested, and calibrated by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, in conjunction with GSFC, NOAA, and the Air Force, and launched aboard the GOES-M satellite in July 2001. The new SXI on GOES 13 has a factor of two greater spatial resolution than the prototype, and like some high-end home video cameras, it has active internal jitter compensation that provides a stable picture even when the spacecraft is moving. In addition, more sophisticated computer control allows SXI to react automatically to changing solar conditions.

SXI will observe solar flares, coronal mass ejections, coronal holes and active regions in the X-ray region of the electromagnetic spectrum from 6 to 60 A (Angstroms). These features are the dominant sources of disturbances in space weather that lead to, for example, geomagnetic storms. SXI will also examine flare properties, newly emerging active regions, and X-ray bright points on the Sun.
SXI will provide continuous, near real-time observation of the Sun's corona, acquiring a full-disk image every minute. The images cover a 42 arc-minute field of view with five arc-second pixels.

The Sun, as viewed from Earth, is approximately 32 arc-minutes in diameter. By recording solar images every minute, NOAA observers will be able to detect and locate the occurrence of solar flares. This is the name given to the explosive releases of vast amounts of magnetic energy in the solar atmosphere. Since scientists are not yet able to predict the occurrence, magnitude or location of solar flares, it is necessary to continually observe the Sun to know when they are happening.
When a flare erupts, it throws out large clouds of ionised, or electrically charged, gas. A small fraction of the cloud is very energetic and can reach the Earth within a few minutes to hours of the flare being observed. These energetic particles pose a hazard to both astronauts and spacecraft.

Coronal mass ejections, which are often associated with flares, take several days to reach the Earth. Fast, powerful ejections give rise to geomagnetic storms, which can disrupt radio transmissions and induce large currents in power transmission lines and oil pipelines. They have resulted in large-scale failures of the North American power grid and greatly increased pipeline erosion. SXI also will monitor coronal holes -- persistent sources of high-speed solar wind. As the Sun rotates every 27 days, these sources spray across the Earth and cause recurring geomagnetic storms.

The Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory at the ATC has a long heritage of spaceborne solar instruments including the Soft X-ray Telescope on the Japanese Yohkoh satellite, the Michelson Doppler Imager on the ESA/NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, and the solar telescope on NASA's Transition Region and Coronal Explorer. The laboratory also conducts basic research into understanding and predicting space weather and the behaviour of our Sun including its impacts on Earth and climate.

The ATC is the research and development organization of Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company (LMSSC). LMSSC, a major operating unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation, designs, develops, tests, manufactures and operates a variety of advanced technology systems for military, civil and commercial customers. Chief products include a full-range of space launch systems, including heavy-lift capability, ground systems, remote sensing and communications satellites for commercial and government customers, advanced space observatories and interplanetary spacecraft, fleet ballistic missiles and missile defence systems.

Source Lockheed Martin Corporation

Blobrana · L

GOES-N

Blobrana · L

RE: GOES-13

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Confirmation that the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-N (GOES-N) has been deployed from the Delta 4 rocket's upper stage.

This completes the 315th Delta rocket launch, and the fifth for Delta 4.