Weather satellites provide three dimensional atmospheric data that weather forecasters use in order to observe and predict emerging weather patterns. There are two types of satellites that are utilized in order to gather the necessary data, they are: polar orbit satellites and geosynchronous orbit satellites. The polar orbit sat elites rotate around the earth longitudinally at a distance of a bout 1100 km from the earths surface. As they pass over the surface, the polar orbiting satellites survey a different meridional segment of the surface, in this manor a complete picture of the earths surface is composed. Satellites that are placed at 35,000 km above the equator above a given location. These stationary satellites known as geosynchronous satellites, are able to cover one-third of the or so of the Earth, and with infrared capabilities, they are able to perform there tasks in the darkness and the light. Two geostationary GOES 10 and GOES 12 provide important information that enables satellite weather maps.
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