GOES-T set to launch March 1: A new weather eye to help us stay safe

A 6,000- pound satellite is set to launch from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on March 1. This satellite, temporarily named, GOES-T, is the third of this constellation of 4.

GOES-R and GOES-S were launched in November 2016 and March 2018, respectively. GOES-R, became GOES-16 after being placed in orbit and faces (mostly) the Atlantic, monitoring the tropics and the Americas. GOES-S became GOES-17 after a short period of calibration and getting in orbit. GOES-17 mainly monitors the Pacific Ocean and the storms moving toward the United States.

These satellites come packed with crucial instruments, not only watching for weather events but also fires, and even solar storms that might affect our communications.

Check out all the instruments that GOES-T will have aboard

GOES-T will be the latest satellite launch of the series on March 1, 2022. The 2-hour launch window opens at 4:38 p.m. ET. The satellite will be launched aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from launch pad 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

After the satellite reaches space and reaches 22,236 miles above the equator, it will be in calibration mode for a short time. It will then replace GOES-17, which currently monitors the Pacific Ocean. GOES-17 will become a backup.

This series of satellites will extend the life of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) constellation until 2037. Each satellite has a useful life of 15 years. GOES 1, the first weather satellite of the series was launched on October 16, 1975.