CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — For decades, weather forecasts have been improving thanks to increased help from satellite imagery. A new satellite will be launched into space to continue this trend on Tuesday.
Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-T (GOES-T) is the satellite and it will launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Space Force's 45th Weather Squadron has forecast 80% favorable weather conditions for the launch on Tuesday at 4:38 p.m. While the satellite will be launched on Tuesday, it will not be operating right away.
After being launched by the Atlas V rocket, it will be moved into a fixed location, hence the term "geostationary," over the Pacific Ocean.
According to NASA, the satellite will first need to be checked out, calibrated and deemed ready for operations. Once the satellite is ready and in place, it will be renamed GOES-18, replacing the satellite that currently monitors that area, GOES-17.
The satellite will monitor weather conditions over the Pacific Ocean, U.S. West Coast, Hawaii and Alaska.
How will this help us forecast weather in North Georgia?
The satellite, operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), will help to add important data into weather models.
Data that shows current conditions will help weather models initialize better, which helps to create a more accurate forecast.
To learn more about the latest satellite being added to NOAA's arsenal, click here.
You can watch the launch live on Tuesday, March 1, 2022, at 4:38 p.m. EST by clicking here.
RELATED: