NASA will provide live coverage of pre-launch and launch activities for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite U (GOES-U) mission. The two-hour launch window opens at 5:16 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, June 25 for the satellite’s launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The GOES-U satellite, the latest addition to the GOES-R series, will help prepare for two types of weather conditions: Earth weather and space weather. GOES satellites play a critical role in providing continuous coverage of the Western Hemisphere, including monitoring tropical systems in the Eastern Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. This continuous monitoring helps scientists and forecasters issue timely warnings and forecasts to help protect the billion people who live and work in the Americas. Additionally, GOES-U carries a new compact coronagraph that will image the outer layer of the solar atmosphere to detect and characterize coronal mass ejections.
The media accreditation deadline for in-person coverage of this launch has passed. NASA’s Media Accreditation Policy is available online. For questions regarding media accreditation, please email: ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov.
NASA mission coverage is as follows (all times Eastern and subject to change based on real-time operations):
Monday June 24
9:30 a.m. – NASA EDGE GOES-U pre-launch broadcast on NASA+, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.
11 a.m. – GOES-U scientific briefing with the following participants:
- Charles Webb, Deputy Director, Joint Agency Satellite Division, NASA
- Ken Graham, director of NOAA’s National Weather Service
- Dan Lindsey, Chief Scientist, GOES-R Program, NOAA
- Elsayed Talaat, director of NOAA’s Office of Space Weather Observations
- Chris Wood, NOAA Hurricane Hunter pilot
Coverage of the science press conference will be streamed live on NASA+, the NASA app, YouTube and the agency’s website.
Media can ask questions in person and by telephone. Limited space in the auditorium will be available for in-person participation. To obtain the dial-in number and password, media should contact the Kennedy News Room no later than one hour before the start of the event at ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.
3:15 p.m. – NASA Kennedy Social Panel with the following participants:
- Jade Zsiros, Telemetry Engineer, NASA Launch Services Program
- Ellen Ramirez, deputy division chief, Mission Operations Division, National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service Office of Satellite and Product Operations, NOAA
- Dakota Smith, satellite analyst and communicator, NOAA Cooperative Institute for Atmospheric Research
- Allana Nepomuceno, Senior Director, GOES-U Assembly, Test and Launch Operations, Lockheed Martin
- Chris Reith, Program Manager, Advanced Baseline Imager, L3Harris Technologies
The panel will be streamed live on NASA Kennedy’s YouTube, X, and Facebook accounts. Members of the public can ask questions online by posting them on YouTube, X and Facebook live streams or using #AskNASA.
5:00 p.m. – Pre-launch press conference at Kennedy (after completion of the launch readiness review), with the following participants:
- Denton Gibson, Launch Director, Launch Services Program, NASA
- Steve Volz, Assistant Administrator, NOAA Satellite and Information Service
- Pam Sullivan, GOES-R Program Director, NOAA
- John Gagosian, Director, Joint Agency Satellite Division
- Julianna Scheiman, NASA Science Mission Director, SpaceX
- Brian Cizek, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron, U.S. Space Force
Coverage of the pre-launch press conference will be streamed live on NASA+, the NASA app, YouTube and the agency’s website.
Media can ask questions in person and by telephone. Limited space in the auditorium will be available for in-person participation. To obtain the dial-in number and password, media should contact the Kennedy News Room no later than one hour before the start of the event at ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.
Tuesday June 25
1:00 p.m. – One-on-one media interviews with the following:
- Michael Morgan, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction, NOAA
- Michael Brennan, director of NOAA’s National Hurricane Center
- James Spann, Senior Scientist, Office of Space Weather Observations, NOAA
- John Gagosian, Director, Joint Agency Satellite Division
- Krizia Negron, language program manager, National Weather Service Office of Science and Technology Integration, NOAA (bilingual, available for interviews in Spanish)
- Dan Lindsey, Chief Scientist, GOES-R Program, NOAA
- Jagdeep Shergill, Program Director, GEO Weather, Lockheed Martin
- Chris Reith, Program Manager, Advanced Baseline Imager, L3Harris Technologies
4:15 p.m. – NASA launch coverage begins on NASA+, the agency’s website and other digital channels.
5:16 p.m. – Two-hour launch window opens
Audio coverage only
Audio only of the press conferences and launch coverage will be broadcast on NASA “V” circuits, accessible by dialing 321-867-1220, -1240 or -7135. On launch day, “mission audio,” the countdown activities without commentary from NASA Television’s launch media, will be broadcast to 321-867-7135.
Live video coverage ahead of launch
NASA will provide a live video feed of Launch Complex 39A approximately 24 hours before the mission’s scheduled liftoff on the NASA Kennedy YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/kscnewsroom. The stream will be uninterrupted until the start of the pre-launch broadcast on the NASA Television media channel.
NASA website launch coverage
Launch day coverage of the mission will be available on the agency’s website. Coverage will include live streaming and blog updates beginning no earlier than 3 p.m., June 25, as the countdown stages unfold. On-demand streaming videos and photos of the launch will be available shortly after liftoff.
For questions about Countdown coverage, contact the Kennedy newsroom at 321-867-2468. Follow the countdown on the GOES blog.
For more information about Spanish coverage at the Kennedy Space Center or to request interviews in Spanish, please contact Antonia Jaramillo: antonia.jaramillobotero@nasa.govo Messod Bendayan:messod.c.bendayan@nasa.gov
Attend the launch virtually
Members of the public can register to attend this launch virtually. NASA’s Virtual Guest Program for this mission also includes curated launch resources, notifications about related opportunities or changes, and a post-launch NASA Virtual Guest Passport stamp.
Watch, engage on social media
Let people know you’re following the mission on X, Facebook and Instagram using the hashtags #ReadyToGOES and #NASASocial. You can also stay connected by following and tagging these accounts:
X: @NASA, @NASA_LSP, @NASAKennedy, @NOAASatellites, @NASAGoddard
Facebook: NASA, NASA LSP, NASA Kennedy, NOAA Satellites, NASA Goddard
Instagram: NASA, NASA Kennedy, NOAA satellites
For more information about the mission, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/goes-u
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Liz Vlock
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
elizabeth.a.vlock@nasa.gov
Pierre Jacobs
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
301-286-0535
peter.jacobs@nasa.gov
Leejay Lockhart
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-747-8310
leejay.lockhart@nasa.gov