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Dataset Overview | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

NOAA GOES A-C Series Visible Infrared Spin Scan Radiometer (VISSR) and GOES D-H Series VISSR Atmospheric Sounder (VAS) Data

GOES PRE-GVAR

browse graphicGOES-7 visible image of Hurricane Andrew approaching the Bahamas August 23, 1992.
GOES Satellite Data - VISSR/VAS (GOES-7 and earlier) - The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) series of satellites goal is to monitor the atmosphere for severe weather development such as tornadoes, flash floods, hail storms and hurricanes. The positioning of the GOES satellites at around 36,000 km (22,000 statute miles) above the equator at a fixed position above the earth allowed them to scan large geographic regions of the Western Hemisphere and as frequently as once every half hour. Coverage is typically provided by two GOES spacecraft, one at -75.0 Longitude (GOES East) and the other at -135.0 Longitude (GOES West). The Visible and Infrared Spin Scan Radiometer (VISSR) was flown aboard NOAA Synchronous Meteorological Satellite (SMS-1 and SMS-2) and GOES-1 through GOES-3 and modified to become the VISSR Atmospheric Sounder (VAS) flown aboard GOES-4 through GOES-7.
  • Cite as: University of Wisconsin-Madison SSEC and NOAA OSPO, (1974): NOAA GOES A-C Series Visible Infrared Spin Scan Radiometer (VISSR) and GOES D-H Series VISSR Atmospheric Sounder (VAS) Data. [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. doi:10.25921/6GX5-6608. [access date].
gov.noaa.ncdc:C01584
Order Data
Distribution Formats
  • McIDAS Area
  • Raw
Ordering Instructions Contact NCEI for other distribution options and instructions.
Distributor NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
ncei.info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact Customer Engagement Branch
DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
ncei.sat.info@noaa.gov
Time Period 1974-05-01 to 1996-01-11
Spatial Bounding Box Coordinates
West: 141.7005
East: 6.2995
South: -81.3282
North: 81.3282
West: -156.2995
East: 6.2995
South: -81.3282
North: 81.3282
West: 141.7005
East: -55.7005
South: -81.3282
North: 81.3282
Spatial Coverage Map
Dataset Information
General Documentation
Associated Resources
Publication Dates
  • publication: 1974-05-01
Data Presentation Form Digital image
Dataset Progress Status Complete - production of the data has been completed
Data Update Frequency Not planned
Purpose To measure radiant and solar reflected energy for use in monitoring weather patterns. The VISSR and VAS were designed to provide rapid continuous viewing of local areas for regional Earth and atmospheric monitoring.
Dataset Citation
  • Cite as: University of Wisconsin-Madison SSEC and NOAA OSPO, (1974): NOAA GOES A-C Series Visible Infrared Spin Scan Radiometer (VISSR) and GOES D-H Series VISSR Atmospheric Sounder (VAS) Data. [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. doi:10.25921/6GX5-6608. [access date].
Cited Authors
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/OSPO > Office of Satellite and Product Operations, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • UWI-MAD/SSEC > Space Science and Engineering Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Originators
  • UWI-MAD/SSEC > Space Science and Engineering Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Resource Providers
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/OSPO > Office of Satellite and Product Operations, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Publishers
  • NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
Theme keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords
  • Earth Science > Spectral/Engineering > Infrared Wavelengths > Brightness Temperature
  • Earth Science > Spectral/Engineering > Infrared Wavelengths > Infrared Imagery
  • Earth Science > Spectral/Engineering > Infrared Wavelengths > Infrared Radiance
  • Earth Science > Spectral/Engineering > Infrared Wavelengths > Thermal Infrared
  • Earth Science > Spectral/Engineering > Visible Wavelengths > Visible Imagery
  • Earth Science > Spectral/Engineering > Visible Wavelengths > Visible Radiance
  • Earth Science > Climate Indicators
Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) Essential Climate Variables (ECVs)
  • Atmospheric - Upper-air - Cloud Properties
  • Atmospheric - Upper-air - Upper-air Water Vapour
Data Center keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Data Center Keywords
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCDC > National Climatic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/STAR > Center for Satellite Applications and Research, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/OSPO > Office of Satellite and Product Operations, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Platform keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Platform Keywords
  • SMS-1 > Synchronous Meteorological Satellite 1
  • SMS-2 > Synchronous Meteorological Satellite 2
  • GOES-1 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 1
  • GOES-2 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 2
  • GOES-3 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 3
  • GOES-4 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 4
  • GOES-5 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 5
  • GOES-6 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 6
  • GOES-7 > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite 7
Instrument keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords
  • VISSR > Visible and Infrared Spin Scan Radiometer
  • VAS > VISSR Atmospheric Sounder
Place keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
  • Geographic Region > Equatorial
  • Geographic Region > Mid-Latitude
  • Geographic Region > Northern Hemisphere
  • Geographic Region > Southern Hemisphere
  • Geographic Region > Western Hemisphere
  • Geographic Region > Tropics
  • Continent > North America > United States Of America
  • Continent > North America > Central America
  • Continent > South America
  • Ocean > Atlantic Ocean
  • Ocean > Pacific Ocean
  • Ocean > Atlantic Ocean > North Atlantic Ocean > Gulf Of Mexico
Project keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Project Keywords
  • GOES > Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites
  • gov.noaa.class:PRE_GVAR
Data Resolution keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Horizontal Data Resolution Keywords
  • 1 km - < 10 km or approximately .01 degree - < .09 degree
  • 500 meters - < 1 km
Stratum keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
  • Vertical Location > Troposphere
Use Constraints
  • Cite as: University of Wisconsin-Madison SSEC and NOAA OSPO, (1974): NOAA GOES A-C Series Visible Infrared Spin Scan Radiometer (VISSR) and GOES D-H Series VISSR Atmospheric Sounder (VAS) Data. [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. doi:10.25921/6GX5-6608. [access date].
  • Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
Access Constraints
  • Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.
Fees
  • In most cases, electronic downloads of the data are free. However, fees may apply for custom orders, data certifications, copies of analog materials, and data distribution on physical media.
Lineage information for: dataset
Lineage Statement These data were produced by the NOAA Office of Satellite and Product Operations (OSPO) and are archived at the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).
Processor
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/OSPO > Office of Satellite and Product Operations, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Processing Steps
  • The real-time transmission of GOES VISSR and/or VAS data were received at the NESDIS Command and Data Acquisition Facility (CDA) station directly from the satellites, and processed by the Synchronous Data Buffer (SDB). The SDB reformats the data, determines the start of each line, performs a calibration of the IR data, brightness-enhances the visible data, adds grid and orbit/attitude information and retransmits the data back to a transponder on the GOES satellite for broadcast to various user stations. In reformatting the data, the SDB does an equal time to equal angle resampling to compensate for variations in the satellite spin rate. Therefore, the result is a constant number of data values per scan line corresponding to the nominal 100 rpm spin rate. The broadcast data rate is chosen such that the retransmission just occupies the time interval between real-time data bursts; i.e., the retransmission is accomplished while the instrument mirror on the satellite is viewing space between scans of the Earth (333 degrees of each spin is space view). The reduced bandwidth broadcast datastream is called the "stretched data". The format for the stretched data has changed 3 times during the archive period, and these formats are referred to as Mode A, AA, or AAA.The VAS data stream was routed to a VAS Image Processor (VIP) within the CDA station. The VIP reformatted, conducted quality checks, calibrated, and added navigational parameters to the data and then retransmitted it to the GOES satellites at 1.75 Mpbs, which in turn broadcasted the SVAS data to receiving stations at the University of Wisconsin. Data from the VAS Multi-Spectral Imaging mode and the Dwell Sounding mode were not "stretched". The spatial and temporal information is provided by the VISSR Image Registration and Gridding System (VIRGS) computing facility at NOAA and inserted into the stretched VAS format by the VIP.
  • NOAA's key downlink site for archive purposes was the University of Wisconsin Space Science and Engineering Center (SSEC) in Madison, Wisconsin. SSEC has been recording and storing GOES data since 1978. Throughout the entire history of PRE_GVAR data archive, the data were recorded on Sony U-Matic cassettes. Around 2001, NCDC funded the "GOES Data Rescue Project". SSEC began transferring the data from the aging U-matic cassettes onto IBM 3590. During the rescue project, which lasted over 2 years, some of the data was transferred to NCDC's Hierarchical Data Storage System via FTP. The remainder of the rescued data was shipped on tapes. The transfer of the entire GOES database to NCDC was completed in late 2005.
Lineage information for: repository
Processing Steps
  • 2015-04-22T00:00:00 - NOAA created the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) by merging NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC), and National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), including the National Coastal Data Development Center (NCDDC), per the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, Public Law 113-235. NCEI launched publicly on April 22, 2015.
Last Modified: 2023-06-23
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