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  • Online Satellite Imagery and Information

Online Satellite Imagery and Information

“We live in a society absolutely dependent on science and technology and yet have cleverly arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology.
That’s a clear prescription for disaster.”

Carl Sagan


Relative Positions of Earth-Orbiting Satellites

Online Satellite Imagery and Information

  • RealEarth™ is a data discovery and visualization platform developed at SSEC/CIMSS at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to support the outreach and collaboration efforts of scientists.
  • Beginner’s Guide to GOES-R Series Data How to acquire, analyze, and visualize GOES-R Series data.
  • GOES-R SERIES DOCUMENTS – The GOES-R series Documents and PUGS
  • The Geostationary Weather Satellite Group on Facebook.
  • Stuff in Space A Graphical Representation of the stuff in orbit.
  • Celestrack Cesium A graphical tracking page.
  • WxSatS A very cool view from a weather satellite perspective.
  • SatNOGS Network
  • POES Operational Status – POES Status – OSPO
  • SOLARHAM.com | Solar Cycle 25 | Space Weather Website
  • ForWarn II is a US Forest Service satellite-mapping tool if you’re interested in tracking vegetation changes caused by wildfires, flooding, tornados, severe weather, insects, diseases, and human-induced disturbances.
  • GOES Imagery Viewer – NOAA / NESDIS / STAR
  • ABI Meso-scale location search function from the SSEC Data center for GOES-East and -West over their operational lifetimes.
  • GOES Data – A big list by SSEC/CIMSS. The GOTO for all things GOES by the University of Wisconsin – Advanced Satellite Products Branch (ASPB) ~ The Birthplace of Satellite Meteorology ~This site has A LOT of information, data, imagery, etc. Including a section on free software for image manipulation, data analysis, phone apps, and more!
  • GOES HRIT Schedules (this is what you can download off your dish.
  • GOES-16 Band Reference Guide (PDF) So, what is Band 15, and why is it ‘Dirty’?
  • ABI BANDS QUICK INFORMATION GUIDES These include two visible channels, four near-infrared channels, and ten infrared channels. Each fact sheet covers what the band measures and how this is operationally relevant. The fact sheets also include links for more information.
  • GOES GRB Schedules (you’ll need a bigger dish!)

The geostationary orbit is located at an altitude of 35,786 km (22,236 mi) above the Earth’s equator and rotates in sync with the Earth’s rotation.

  • The equation to calculate the radius of a geostationary orbit is: R = (GM/ω^2)^(1/3) Where:
  • R = radius of the geostationary orbit (km)
  • G = gravitational constant (6.673 x 10^-11 m^3 kg^-1 s^-2)
  • M = mass of the Earth (5.972 x 10^24 kg)
  • ω = angular velocity of the Earth (7.292 x 10^-5 radian/sec)

User Groups and Forums

  • Geo-Stationary Facebook Satellite Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/gswsg Facebook Group for Geo-Stationary Weather Satellites
  • GOESTools Users https://groups.google.com/g/goestools-users A smaller group for people who use the software Goestools 
  • GEO-Subscribers https://groups.io/g/GEO-Subscribers  The official group is for subscribers of the Group for Earth Observation (GEO)
  • Amateur Satellite Group on Reddit  https://www.reddit.com/r/amateursatellites/ A subreddit dedicated to artificial satellites

Tools for finding satellite positions.

  • Online Dish Pointer, Usradioguy
  • Satellite Look Angle Calculator
  • Dishpointer
  • https://www.n2yo.com/
  • Heavens Above
  • Celestrack.com

Open Source Software

  • Goestools https://github.com/pietern/goestools Tools to work with signals and files from GOES satellites.
  • SATDUMP https://github.com/altillimity/  A multi-satellite decoder and image processor.
  • GK-2A Decoder https://github.com/sam210723/xrit-rx LRIT/HRIT Downlink Processor for GK-2A
  • Sanchez https://github.com/nullpainter/sanchez Designed for processing of greyscale IR images from geostationary satellites, can also be used to reproject full-color images.
  • Vitality GOES https://github.com/JVital2013/vitality-goes A Web App for showcasing Geostationary Weather Satellite Data.
  • Raydel XRIT Decoder http://www.geo-web.org.uk/XRITDecoder.php A software solution for decoding and extracting files from GOES LRIT/HRIT stream,
  • CSPP Geo software https://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/csppgeo/ Community Satellite Processing Package for Geostationary Data
  • Geo2Grid Software Package
  • XRIT Decoder Open Satellite Project https://github.com/opensatelliteproject/xritdemod
  • Xplanet
  • Grafana
  • McIDAS-V (UW Madison)
  • SIFT–Satellite Information Familiarization Tool (UW Madison)  More info
  • Python notebook displaying ABI data from @blaylockbk
  • SSEC’s HYDRA (use single or multi band CMIP files) Most recent version of the code
  • GOES-16 Manipulation Tools from GNC-A
  • Manipulating GOES-16 with GDAL from the OCC
  • NCview a netCDF visual (quicklook) browser
  • Integrated Data Viewer (IDV) (UNIDATA)
  • Panoply from NASA Goddard.
  • Pytroll GOES-16 ABI: Example
  • ImageJ image manipulation.
  • Software for Manipulating/Displaying NetCDF Data list from UNIDATA.
  • Weather and Climate Toolkit (WCT) from NOAA/NCEI.
  • Beginner’s Guide to GOES-R Series Data Resources compiled by Danielle Losos, GOES-R Product Readiness and Operations
  • Google Earth Engine: CIMSS “True” Color multi-band example (2 km) and Level 2 Fire/Hot Spot Characterization by D. Losos and K. Schwehr.

    Commercial Software

    • XRIT Decoder for GOES https://usa-satcom.com/ XRIT Decoder (HRIT from GOES on L-Band), XView, WX Sandwich Maker
    • GRB Play https://usa-satcom.com/ Processes NetCDF files for GOES GRB , does animations, Electron and X-Ray flux as well.
    • SUVI Play https://usa-satcom.com/ Displays and does animations with CSPP GEO images from GOES GRB
    • GRB Streamer and Imager– Bret Casebolt

    GOES-16/17 ABI Info

    • GOES-R Program the GOES-R Series Data Book and the GOES-R Series Book, including space wx (Elsevier)
    • GOES-R Docs F&PS, ATBDs, PUGs, etc. ABI File name conventions
    • NESDIS home page and the Product Quality overview page.
    • GOES-R/16 tweets and GOES-S/17 tweets
    • Pre-launch BAMS article on the ABI including ABI Band Table and ABI Guide
    • ABI Mode 3 “cooling” timeline (G-17 only certain times) Mode Mode 3 (flex) Mode 4 (CFD) GOES-16 Mode 6a (w 10-min FD) GOES-17 Mode 6m (w 10-min FD)
    • Post-launch NWA JOM article on the ABI including ABI Band Table
    • Photons to Pixels article on the ABI
    • Generation of GOES-16 True Color Imagery without a Green Band in AGU’s Earth and Space Science, including this figure
    • GOES-R Series Publications List
    • Recent / Planned ABI Meso-scale locations GOES Contacts e.g., email: SPSD.UserServices@noaa.gov and the meso-sector reposition priority list. NCO.
    • ABI Meso-scale locations over the last year and more from the SSEC Data center the last year and more for GOES-East
    • ABI Meso-scale location search function from the SSEC Data center for GOES-East and -West over their operational lifetimes
    • GOES-East and GOES-West Meso-scale preview location tool from CIRA;  Default coverage/pixel size plots, West and East from CIMSS
    • Special Bulletins/ General Messages regarding NOAA’s satellite operations.
    • GRB ABI Schedules and HRIT ABI Schedules from NOAA’s satellite operations and contacts and Mesoscale Research Request form
    • How to DIY and aquire HRIT and other signals by @carlreinemann
    • SSEC ABI Monitoring page
    • Big Ten Network on Geo Wx Satellites and 2017 Wednesday Nite at the Lab seminar on GOES-16
    • Top 25 ABI Animations from GOES-16 and Top 25 ABI Animations from GOES-17
    • Beginner’s Guide to GOES-R Series Data Resources compiled by Danielle Losos, GOES-R Product Readiness and Operations

    Recommended Hardware Suppliers

    • Nooelec
    • RTL-SDR blog
    • Airspy

    Space Weather

    • USRadioguys Space Weather Page
    • GOES-R Series Space Weather Data
    • GOES-16 SUVI imagery from the Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC).
    • GOES-16 SUVI imagery from a DIY GRB receiving system by @wxstar3000 and @H_Neil and a RGB maker Art and Science together!
    • GOES-16 SUVI First Light RGB-maker small and large.

    History of GOES satellites

    Graphic by NOAA
    GOES-R Model, built from Paper!
    GOES-R PAPER MODEL

    Over on AXM PAPER SPACE SCALE MODELS BLOG they have a downloadable, printable model of the ATLAS V GOES-R EELV ROCKET and GOES-R PAPER MODEL. The Model of GOES-R is 1:35 scale, designed by Zach from Zach’s PaperSat Designs. The two pdf’s need are below:

    • GOES-R Build ZIP file

    Hardware Humor Imagery Processing Interesting stuff you should know! Launch News Life News Product Review Satellites Science Software Space Weather Uncategorized VLOG

    Satellite And Weather Related Feeds

    • CIMSS Satellite Blog
    • USRadioguy.com
    • wildfires
    • NASA Earth Observatory
    • SPC Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Tornado/Severe Thunderstorm Watch
    • satellites
    • Satellites News -- ScienceDaily
    • Satellite Liaison Blog
    Trout Fire in New Mexico produces a pyrocumulonimbus cloud
    Trout Fire in New Mexico produces a pyrocumulonimbus cloud
    Blowing dust in Argentina
    Blowing dust in Argentina
    Canadian wildfire smoke over Alaska
    Canadian wildfire smoke over Alaska
    End Of Life for NOAA 15 and 19?….not so fast…
    End Of Life for NOAA 15 and 19?….not so fast…
    Vitality GOES
    Vitality GOES
    Decommissioning NOAA-18
    Decommissioning NOAA-18
    The fire cycle
    Unmasking the complicated chemistry of wildfire smoke: What's in it?
    Unmasking the complicated chemistry of wildfire smoke: What's in it?
    NOAA unveils powerful convergence of AI and science with revolutionary Next-Generation Fire System technology
    NOAA unveils powerful convergence of AI and science with revolutionary Next-Generation Fire System technology
    Earth’s Clouds on the Move
    Earth’s Clouds on the Move
    Seasonal Breakup in the Amundsen Gulf
    Seasonal Breakup in the Amundsen Gulf
    Egypt’s Mediterranean Coast
    Egypt’s Mediterranean Coast
    SPC PDS Severe Thunderstorm Watch 399
    SPC PDS Severe Thunderstorm Watch 399
    Five historically huge solar events
    Five historically huge solar events
    65 years since the world’s first weather satellite
    65 years since the world’s first weather satellite
    Investing in America: NOAA's Science, Service and Stewardship in Action
    Satellite measures CO2 and NO2 simultaneously from power plant emissions for the first time
    Existing international law can help secure peace and security in outer space
    Small, faint and 'unexpected in a lot of different ways': Astronomers make galactic discovery
    Late-Season Atlantic Hurricane-Force Low
    Late-Season Atlantic Hurricane-Force Low
    Atmospheric River Strikes Eastern U.S.
    Atmospheric River Strikes Eastern U.S.
    Another Week, Another Deep South Soaker
    Another Week, Another Deep South Soaker
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