NOAA-N Prime is the latest and final spacecraft in the Advanced TIROS-N
(ATN) satellite series. All have been designed and built for the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) by Lockheed Martin since the first
Television and Infrared Observational Satellite (TIROS) weather satellite
launch in
"This team has been totally dedicated to providing NASA and NOAA with
satellites to extend NOAA's ability to provide environmental data products to
users, and reaching this milestone is always very satisfying," says
A constellation consists of two POES satellites circling the planet in nearly north-south orbits. As the Earth rotates, the entire globe, one swath at a time rolls into view of the satellites' instruments. The instruments are continually sensing the entire depth of the atmosphere and report on the following environmental measurements:
-- Atmosphere Temperatures and Moisture Soundings -- Sea-surface Temperatures -- Land-surface Temperatures -- Cloud Cover and Heights -- Precipitable Moisture -- Total Ozone -- Clear Radiance -- Incoming and Radiated Heat
Together these data comprise irreplaceable inputs to the numerical weather forecast model and are vital to weather and climate forecasting. Separately or in combination, the data are utilized to produce sea-surface temperature maps, ice condition charts, snow cover analysis, vegetation maps and other forecasting and management tools.
Additionally, NOAA-N Prime carries an enhanced complement of microwave instruments for the generation of temperature, moisture, surface, and hydrological products in cloudy regions where visible and infrared instruments have diminished capability. NOAA-N Prime also carries search and rescue instruments that are used internationally for locating ships, aircraft, and people in distress. The use of satellites in search and rescue has been instrumental in saving more than 24,500 lives since the inception of the Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking (SARSAT) system.
The NOAA-N Prime satellite will operate in a circular, near-polar orbit of 464 nautical miles above the Earth with an inclination angle of 98.73 degrees to the equator. Its orbital period, which is the time it takes to complete one orbit of the Earth, will be approximately 102.14 minutes.
The NOAA-N Prime orbit is sun-synchronous, rotating eastward about the Earth's polar axis 0.986 degrees each day, approximately the same rate and direction as the Earth's average daily rotation about the sun. The rotation keeps the satellite in a constant position with reference to the sun for constant scene illumination throughout the year.
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, in
Following the launch and a comprehensive on-orbit verification period that
lasts 45 days, NASA will turn operational control of the satellites over to
NOAA. NOAA will operate the satellites from the Satellite Operations Control
Center in
NOAA's environmental satellite system is composed of two types of satellites: Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) for national, regional, short-range warning and "now-casting"; and Polar Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) for global, long-term forecasting and environmental monitoring. Both GOES and POES are necessary for providing a complete global weather monitoring system. Both also carry search and rescue instruments to relay signals from people in distress.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, a major operating unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation, designs and develops, tests, manufactures and operates a full spectrum of advanced-technology systems for national security and military, civil government and commercial customers. Chief products include human space flight systems; a full range of remote sensing, navigation, meteorological and communications satellites and instruments; space observatories and interplanetary spacecraft; laser radar; ballistic missiles; and missile defense systems; and nanotechnology research and development. During its five decades of service to the international space community, Space Systems Company has produced some 900 spacecraft, including 380 classified missions and over 150 small satellites.
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SOURCE Lockheed Martin