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<i>♪ ♪ Music begins. ♪♪</i>

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<i>TV Announcer: Five... Four...Three...(rocket engines rumble)...Two...One...</i>

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Narrator: In 2025, NOAA is celebrating 50 years of its heralded

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Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite program,

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known as GOES.

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For five decades, NOAA and NASA have partnered to advance NOAA

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satellite observations from geostationary orbit.

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GOES are our sentinels in the sky,

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keeping constant watch for severe weather and environmental hazards

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on Earth and dangerous space weather.

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It all began in October 1975 with the launch of GOES-1.

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The satellite gave forecasters their first near real-time look

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at atmospheric conditions from a fixed location.

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Before GOES, we didn’t have accurate information about where

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and when hurricanes would come ashore.

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<i>NASA 1974 Earth From Above Narrator: These giant storms have arrived</i>

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<i>with little warning. And more frequently as deadly surprises.</i>

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<i>(Seagulls cawing--caw-caw)</i>

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<i>(Satellites beeping to each other transmitting data--Beeeeep! Beeeep! --)</i>

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<i>We can’t stop hurricanes from happening.</i>

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<i>(Beep!)</i>
<i>But now, we can at least be forewarned more quickly,</i>

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<i>and accurately.</i>

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<i>And hopefully better from the time of its birth., </i>

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<i>predict its course.</i>
<i>(Computer rapidly beeping and pinging from satellite transmission)</i>

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<i>And sound a life-saving warning.</i>
<i>(rapid beeps continue and fade away)</i>

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Narrator: The new satellites quickly began providing critical information

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about these storms and where they were headed.

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By 1980, a new series of GOES was in orbit.

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<i>1980s Space and Aeronautics Report Narrator: In space applications,</i>

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<i>the GOES-4 weather satellite was checked out and</i>

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<i>launched from Kennedy Space Center...</i>

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Narrator: They were able to obtain vertical profiles of temperature

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and moisture throughout the atmosphere.

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The added dimension gave forecasters a more accurate picture

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of the intensity and extent of storms.

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GOES-7, launched in 1987, added the new capability of

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detecting distress signals from emergency beacons.

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Since then, GOES have helped to rescue thousands of people.

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In 1994, GOES-8 brought significant improvements.

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Flexible scanning offered imaging of small-scale areas

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and let meteorologists monitor local weather trouble spots,

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improving short-term forecasts.

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Simultaneous imaging and sounding allowed forecasters

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to use multiple measurements of weather phenomena

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to increase the accuracy of their forecasts.

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By the mid-2000s, the fourth generation GOES further improved the

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navigation system to better determine the coordinates of intense storms.

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<i>Broadcast announcer: Three...Two...(Rocket engines rumble)...One...</i>

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Narrator: Then, in 2016, the current generation of GOES launched.

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With this series came new state-of-the-art instruments

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like an advanced imager,

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and the first lightning mapper flown in geostationary orbit.

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The latest GOES brought revolutionary improvements,

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providing minute-by-minute information to give early warning that

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severe weather is forming, monitor and track the movement of storms,

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estimate hurricane intensity, detect turbulence,

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and even spot fires before they are reported on the ground.

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Space weather monitoring has also been part of the GOES mission

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since its inception, and continues on today’s GOES satellites.

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A sophisticated suite of instruments monitor the sun and

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the space environment to provide data to warn

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of approaching space weather that can damage satellites,

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disrupt communications and navigation systems,

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impact power grids, and harm astronauts in space.

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For 50 years, GOES data has been the backbone of short-term forecasts

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and warnings of severe weather and environmental hazards

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in the Western Hemisphere

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and forecasts and warnings of space weather hazards.

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As NOAA celebrates the long legacy of the GOES satellites,

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we continue to rely on our “eyes in the sky”

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to help keep the on billion people who live in and work in

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the Americas safe.

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NOAA Logo and NASA Meatball

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<i>♪♪ Music fades off ♪♪</i>