# NOAA-20
*missions*

NOAA-20 (formerly JPSS-1) is the first operational satellite of the Joint Polar Satellite System, a U.S. NOAA/NASA polar-orbiting programme. Launched 18 November 2017 on a Ball Aerospace BCP-2000 bus, it flies a 833 km sun-synchronous orbit and carries five instruments: ATMS, CrIS, VIIRS, OMPS-N, and CERES. As of 2024, designated Secondary PM satellite; expected end of life 2032.

## Specifications
- **operator**: noaa
- **actual launch**: 2017-11-18
- **current status**: operational
- **orbit type**: sun-synchronous
- **orbit altitude km**: 833
- **orbit inclination deg**: 98.75
- **orbit period min**: 101.5
- **entity type**: mission
- **last verified date**: 2026-06-11
- **verified by**: agency-doc
- **claim status**: agency-sourced
- **provider**: noaa
- **attributes**: {"summary":"NOAA-20 (formerly JPSS-1) is the first operational satellite of the Joint Polar Satellite System, a U.S. NOAA/NASA polar-orbiting programme. Launched 18 November 2017 on a Ball Aerospace BCP-2000 bus, it flies a 833 km sun-synchronous orbit and carries five instruments: ATMS, CrIS, VIIRS, OMPS-N, and CERES. As of 2024, designated Secondary PM satellite; expected end of life 2032.","operator":"noaa","actual_launch":"2017-11-18","current_status":"operational","orbit_type":"sun-synchronous","orbit_altitude_km":833,"orbit_inclination_deg":98.75,"orbit_period_min":101.5}
- **relevance**: in-scope

## Editorial
NOAA-20, formerly designated JPSS-1 (Joint Polar Satellite System-1), is the first operational satellite of the JPSS programme, a U.S. NOAA and NASA polar-orbiting meteorological constellation. The spacecraft was built on a Ball Aerospace BCP-2000 bus and launched 18 November 2017. It operates in a sun-synchronous orbit at approximately 833 km altitude (WMO OSCAR records 824 km; eoPortal and CEOS list 833 km[^wmo-oscar-noaa-20][^eoportal-noaa-20]) with an orbital inclination of 98.75 degrees and a period of approximately 101.5 minutes.[^nesdis-jpss]

The satellite carries five instruments: ATMS (Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder), CrIS (Cross-track Infrared Sounder), VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite), OMPS-N (Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite - Nadir), and CERES (Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System).[^eoportal-noaa-20][^ceos-noaa20]

As of 2024, NOAA-20 is designated the Secondary PM (afternoon) satellite within the JPSS constellation, with NOAA-21 serving as primary PM. Design life extends to 2032.[^nesdis-jpss]

## Compositional position
- NOAA-20 --[mission_payloads]--> atms (products)
- nasa-black-marble-vnp46 (data_products) --[related]--> NOAA-20
- world-bank-light-every-night (data_products) --[related]--> NOAA-20

## Sources
- [wmo-oscar-noaa-20] | WMO OSCAR satellite view: NOAA-20 | https://space.oscar.wmo.int/satellites/view/noaa_20 | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-11
- [eoportal-noaa-20] | NOAA-20 mission overview, eoPortal | https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/noaa-20 | tier=community | accessed=2026-06-11
- [nesdis-jpss] | JPSS Programme Office, NESDIS | https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/about/our-offices/joint-polar-satellite-system-jpss-program-office | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-11
- [ceos-noaa20] | NOAA-20 Mission Summary, CEOS EO Handbook | https://database.eohandbook.com/database/missionsummary.aspx?missionID=667 | tier=community | accessed=2026-06-11

---
Source: https://eo-atlas.org/missions/noaa-20
Maintainer: SpectraWorks B.V. (CC-BY 4.0)