A new weather satellite is scheduled to be launched this week in an effort to improve forecasting and the monitoring of global climate changes, officials said. The NOAA-N satellite will lift off from Vandenberg Air Force Base early Wednesday aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket, The Associated Press reported. The fourth in a series of five polar-orbiting weather satellites, the 3,100-pound NOAA-N will collect meteorological data and transmit the information to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA-N will replace the aging NOAA-16, which has been operating since 2000. As it orbits, the satellite will collect data about the Earth's atmosphere and build long-term databases on climate changes and seasonal outlooks. It also contains sensors that will be used in search-and-rescue missions around the world. Three weeks after the satellite is launched, NASA will transfer operational control of the $341 million mission over to NOAA. The last satellite in the series, dubbed NOAA-N Prime, is scheduled for launch in 2007.
