House of Representatives approves increase in weather satellite program funding

The U.S House of Representatives recently approved a legislation that will help the budget shortfall threatening to delay the geostationary weather satellites of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

With a vote of 267-151, lawmakers voted to pass a spending bill that would keep the federal government operating after the current stopgap funding legislation expires on the 27th. Although the house bill would keep funding flat at the 2012 level for most of the federal agencies and departments, the geostationary weather satellites of the NOAA are an exception.

With two geostationary spacecraft orbiting at fixed points above Earth, these weather satellites help transmit crucial data for use in weather forecasts and for tracking storms. Once the spending bill is passed, it would approve an extra $186 million more than NOAA’s program received last year, setting aside a total of $802 million for the agency’s next-generation weather satellite, GOES-R.

Without the funding for the geostationary satellites, the spacecrafts could face further delays, translating into a longer and more severe weather satellite gap expected to occur in the next few years. However, before NOAA can receive the capital for the program, the Senate must approve the legislation first for it to become a law.

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