# Himawari-8
*missions*

## Specifications
- **operator**: jma
- **actual launch**: 2014-10-07
- **current status**: operational
- **orbit type**: Geostationary orbit, 140.7 E, 35786 km
- **revisit days**: 0.0069
- **tasking supported**: false
- **current geographic priority**: East Asia and western Pacific full-disc meteorological monitoring; standby/backup role as of WMO update 2025-11-26
- **launch vehicle**: jaxa-h-iia
- **entity type**: mission
- **last verified date**: 2026-06-14
- **verified by**: agency-doc
- **claim status**: agency-sourced
- **provider**: jma
- **attributes**: {"operator":"jma","actual_launch":"2014-10-07","current_status":"operational","orbit_type":"Geostationary orbit, 140.7 E, 35786 km","revisit_days":0.0069,"tasking_supported":false,"current_geographic_priority":"East Asia and western Pacific full-disc meteorological monitoring; standby/backup role as of WMO update 2025-11-26","launch_vehicle":"jaxa-h-iia"}
- **relevance**: in-scope

## Editorial
Himawari-8 is a geostationary meteorological satellite operated by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), positioned at 140.7 degrees east over the geostationary arc at 35,786 km altitude. It was launched on 2014-10-07 and entered primary operational service on 2015-07-07, covering East Asia and the western Pacific.[^jma-himawari-overview]

The primary imaging payload is the Advanced Himawari Imager (AHI), a 16-channel visible and infrared imaging radiometer. AHI provides full-disc imagery every 10 minutes and targeted sector scans every 2.5 minutes, delivering data for atmospheric motion vector derivation, sea-surface temperature retrieval, and thermal anomaly detection.[^jma-ahi-spec][^wmo-ahi] A data-collection system (DCS) handles relay of in-situ environmental data.[^wmo-himawari-8]

Himawari-9 assumed the primary observation role on 2022-12-13, with Himawari-8 transitioning to backup/standby duty. During an imagery anomaly on Himawari-9 in late 2025, Himawari-8 temporarily resumed the primary role before Himawari-9 was restored to primary status on 2025-11-26.[^jma-himawari-overview][^wmo-himawari-8]

## Compositional position
- Himawari-8 --[mission_payloads]--> ahi (products)
- Himawari-8 --[mission_payloads]--> dcs-himawari-8 (products)
- Himawari-8 --[related-topic]--> weather-nowcasting (topics)
- Himawari-8 --[related-topic]--> atmospheric-wind (topics)
- Himawari-8 --[related-topic]--> sea-surface-temperature (topics)
- Himawari-8 --[related-topic]--> air-quality (topics)
- Himawari-8 --[related-topic]--> wildfire (topics)

## Sources
- [wmo-himawari-8] | WMO OSCAR satellite record: Himawari-8 | https://space.oscar.wmo.int/satellites/view/himawari_8 | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-14
- [jma-himawari-overview] | JMA outline of Himawari-8/9 geostationary meteorological satellites | https://www.jma.go.jp/jma/jma-eng/satellite/himawari89.html | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-14
- [jma-ahi-spec] | JMA Himawari-8/9 AHI specifications | https://www.data.jma.go.jp/mscweb/en/himawari89/space_segment/spsg_ahi.html | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-14
- [wmo-ahi] | WMO OSCAR instrument record: Advanced Himawari Imager | https://space.oscar.wmo.int/instruments/view/ahi | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-14

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Source: https://eo-atlas.org/missions/himawari-8
Maintainer: SpectraWorks B.V. (CC-BY 4.0)