Sensors for NOAA's Future Geostationary Satellites

NOAA has embarked on defining the observing system it requires from its future geostationary operational environmental satellites (GOES). Three years of technology assessments, risk reduction efforts, and requirements trade-offs have culminated in notional designs for a new multi-channel imager and an interferometer sounder to meet advanced baseline requirements for the agency's primary weather missions for the years 2008 and beyond. This paper discusses both technology and policy factors associated with the development of these critical future instruments.