SILVER SPRING, Md. — NOAA’s Space Weather Observations at L1 to Advance Readiness–1 (SOLAR-1) observatory has officially entered operational service, marking a major milestone for the nation’s resilience to space weather events. SOLAR-1 is the first U.S. satellite designed exclusively for continuous, operational space weather observations.
“SOLAR-1 will provide improved observations and high-quality 24/7 data about our sun,” said Irene Parker, acting assistant administrator for NOAA Satellite & Information Service (NESDIS). “SOLAR-1 continues the observations necessary to ensure that we are prepared for solar storms, so we can better protect the nation’s critical terrestrial and space-based infrastructure and future crewed spaceflights.”
A Million-Mile Journey to Deep Space
SOLAR-1, previously known as Space Weather Follow On–Lagrange 1 (SWFO-L1), successfully launched on September 24, 2025, at 7:30 a.m. EST from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Over the next four months, the spacecraft trekked nearly one million miles to the Sun-Earth Lagrange point 1 (L1), where it is now parked to continuously monitor solar wind and observe coronal mass ejections (CME) emitted from the sun.
Before reaching initial operational capability, SOLAR-1 underwent a rigorous, eight-month, post-launch testing and commissioning period. During this time, NOAA and NASA teams meticulously checked each instrument and all primary systems, including the power, on-board computer, propulsion and attitude-control systems, communications, and data storage.
Advancing Readiness
SOLAR-1 strengthens the nation’s ability to safeguard systems that can be disrupted by space weather, including the electric grid, satellites, communications, aviation, navigation systems (including GPS), national security operations, and human spaceflight, such as NASA’s recently completed Artemis II mission.
For NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), SOLAR-1 is a cornerstone of the nation’s space weather early warning system, providing the observations needed to issue timely watches, warnings, alerts, and decision support before solar storms impact critical infrastructure and missions.
“It means more time to act,” said Clinton Wallace, director of NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center. “It gives time for power grid operators to prepare, more time for satellite operators to protect assets, more time for aviation and national security partners to understand risk, and more time for human spaceflight teams to protect astronauts and missions. SOLAR-1 helps turn observations of the sun into practical decisions that protect lives, infrastructure, the economy, and national security.”
As reliance on space-based systems grows and as space exploration expands through missions such as NASA’s Artemis, sustained investment in operational space weather capabilities is increasingly vital to national readiness, astronaut safety, and space asset protection.
SOLAR-1 will ensure continuity of space weather monitoring at L1, constantly streaming data down to Earth without interruption and obstruction, offering improved performance over older instruments and faster delivery of observations to NOAA’s SWPC.
For example, SOLAR-1’s coronagraph will deliver CME imagery to SWPC forecasters and users within 30 minutes of being captured in space. In comparison, legacy research observatories and instruments, such as the ESA-NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory’s (SOHO) coronagraph imaging, can take up to eight hours to transmit data. Furthermore, in situ data from SOLAR-1’s Solar Wind Plasma Sensor, SupraThermal Ion Sensor, and Magnetometer will be available to forecasters within a mere five minutes.
SOLAR-1, and future planned satellite missions for L1, are vital for reducing operational observations risk when it comes to collecting data and information that helps society get ahead of the threats to the nation’s critical infrastructure. SOLAR-1 data will be available to the public in real time via the SWPC website and archived through the NESDIS Space Weather Portal.
