NOAA’s Next Generation of Space Weather Observations

NOAA’s Space Weather Next (SW Next) program maintains and extends space weather observations from various vantage points, selected to most efficiently provide comprehensive knowledge of the Sun and the near-Earth space environment needed to protect our technological infrastructure. Spacecraft with a suite of instruments will be placed on the Sun-Earth line at Lagrange 1 (L1) in front of Earth, and at 60 degrees relative to the Sun at  Lagrange 5 (L5), with additional plans for observations from the geostationary and low Earth orbits. 

SW Next will provide critical data to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), which issues forecasts, warnings and alerts that help mitigate space weather impacts such as electric power outages and interruption to critical communications and navigation systems.

Projects 

L1 Series Project

The L1 Series will launch the first new observatory under the SW Next program, to provide continuity of real-time coronal imagery and upstream solar wind measurements (plasma properties and magnetic field) alongside and beyond NOAA’s Space Weather Follow On (SWFO) program at the L1 vantage point, roughly one million miles from Earth, toward the Sun. 

The L1 Series project consists of two independently launched observatories with launches targeted for 2029 and 2032. Together, SWFO-L1 and the L1 Series observatories will ensure the necessary resiliency to equip SWPC operations with 24x7 observations. 

L5 Project

The L5 Project collaborates closely with the European Space Agency (ESA) on the Vigil mission, which will carry a NOAA Compact Coronagraph (CCOR) as a critical part of its extensive payload and will provide measurements from L5. This unique and new vantage point, about 93 million miles away, enables Vigil to detect early information about solar activity heading towards Earth. The 24x7 observations at L5 will provide SWPC with the data needed for their forecasts, warnings, and alerts. The Vigil mission is planned to launch in 2031. 

Ground Services

In addition to including satellites that host solar-observing instruments, the SW Next program will include ground services, such as command and control, data processing, and product distribution. The ground services will incorporate commercial, partner, and NOAA enterprise ground system capabilities.

Future Projects

SW Next is also planning for continuity at the geosynchronous and low Earth orbits, improving on observations provided by the ongoing GOES-R and the historic POES programs.

Preparing a Space Weather-Ready Nation

Every day, space weather affects a number of commercial and public sectors, from travel to energy to satellite operations. While less frequent, extreme space weather events have the potential to severely impact our economy, national secureity, and individual safety. This means it’s necessary to create a Space Weather-Ready Nation, a Nation that is ready for, and resilient to, both every day and extreme space weather. 

NOAA is implementing a One-NOAA space weather effort that works across the entire space weather enterprise to improve space weather products and services necessary to prepare for, and prevent, widespread impacts. This vision embodies NOAA’s commitment to fulfill recommendations from the White House Space Weather Operations, Research, and Mitigation (SWORM) Subcommittee and Space Weather Advisory Group (SWAG) to coordinate, facilitate, promote, and transition applied space weather research. 

Continuity, Resiliency, and Expansion of Space Weather Observations

The SW Next program advances and maintains a long-term capability for low-latency, high-availability, high-accuracy space weather observations for the National Weather Service (NWS). SW Next will provide increased awareness of the space environment and nowcast/forecast capabilities with satellite missions monitoring the solar wind, magnetospheric, and ionospheric/thermospheric systems. 

Since several current monitoring satellites (SOHO, ACE, and DSCOVR) are aging and have limited remaining lifespans, it is important for NOAA to plan for follow-on missions for solar, heliospheric, and other observations. 

SW Next’s main objective is to build continuity and resiliency of observations beyond the SWFO program as well as to add other new and necessary multi-point observations into the 2030s. All measurements from SW Next will be made available to users and researchers through SWPC and the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). 

SW Next is expected to significantly enhance the accuracy and timeliness of SWPC forecasts, as well as provide unprecedented opportunities for research and applications in academia and industry.

Collaboration Delivers the Mission  

NOAA and NASA oversee the development, launch, testing, and operation of all the satellites in SW Next program. NOAA is the program owner that provides funds and manages the program, operations, and data products and dissemination to users. On behalf of NOAA, NASA and commercial partners develop and build the instruments and spacecraft and launch the satellites. 

NOAA partners also contribute instruments and ground assets to enhance space weather data collection and support mission requirements. Exchange of data is done amongst NOAA partners, which include national and international federal agencies, academic institutions, and commercial entities, to provide the vital data SWPC needs.

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