Updated December 18, 2025                                                 

December News

Jump to:

• Himawari-9 Data Back in Service

• TOWRPro v26

• OSCAT Winds

• GMGSI

• In Case You Missed It

• SWFO-L1 Launched September 24

• MTG-S1 Launched on July 1

• NWS Satellite Readiness Roadmap Activities

• Satellite Book Club

Recent Updates

Himawari-9 Data Back in Service  

Himawari-9 imagery and derived products were restored on November 26 following an upstream disruption which began on October 11, 2025. During the disruption, JMA switched back to Himawari-8 for operations. On October 12, the NESDIS Cloud Common Framework (NCCF) successfully resumed full production using Himawari-8 data, and PDA customers were advised to ensure Himawari-8 subscriptions were enabled. Following the data restoration on the 26th, Himawari-9 imagery and associated products are again available through standard distribution pathways.

TOWRPro v26 AWIPS Software Update Release 

TOWRPro v26 became available on November 20, 2025, and the installation procedure was provided at that time. This release includes several new capabilities and enhancements, such as an updated GOES Geocolor integrating ProxyVis, a faster-loading GOES VIS/IR Sandwich, a GOES Color Vision Deficiency (CVD) Dust RGB, and GPROF (polar) surface precipitation rates (as requested by the Alaska Region). TOWRPro v26 also includes reference procedure bundles supporting common mission applications, and is available for stand-alone NWS cloud instances supporting IMETs/CWSUs.

Please visit the TOWRPro v26 for more details and installation instructions. 

for more details and installation instructions. The November 20, 2025 Satellite Book Club spotlights TOWRPro v26 updates. Additionally, this factsheet provides many of the details.

For questions, contact the #towr-s Slack channel or email the TOWR-S Team with questions.

Looking Ahead

OSCAT Winds Anticipated this Winter

OSCAT Winds data implementation in the NESDIS cloud (NCCF) is expected to begin operational delivery in January 2026. The OSCAT Winds Product reports measurements of the wind speed and direction above the sea surface by use of scatterometer data.

NWS sites who are receiving OSCAT data today are relying upon the TOWRpro v25, which provides a migrational (non-operational) data flow path from NESDIS STAR to NWS. The TOWRpro v26 enhancement will allow for a smooth transition when NESDIS promotes OSCAT product generation to the NCCF.

Please reach out to the  TOWR-S Team with any questions.

ICYMI

Updated GMGSI Available through TOWR-Pro v26

The Global Mosaic of Geostationary Satellite Imagery (GMGSI) is an hourly product set that provides global coverage from 60N to 60S with data from five different geostationary satellites. 

GMGSI migrated to the NOAA NESDIS Common Cloud Framework (NCCF) in December 2024, and support for the legacy on-prem GMGSI will be terminated January 30, 2026. The November release of the TOWR-S v26 package will include support for the NCCF version of the GMGSI. There will be no change to how the GMGSI product appears or is accessed. 

Other than the timely installation of v26, no further action is required from users to ensure continued access to the GMGSI product through the transition to the new NCCF version. Please refer to the OSPO notice for more information and reach out to the TOWR-S Team with questions.

SPADES Update 2025 and Beyond

The Satellite Product Analysis and Distribution Enterprise System (SPADES), a space weather application for SWPC, was updated to v3.0.2 in April 2025. This version replaced the legacy GOES-16 feed with GOES-19. A maintenance release updating G19 coefficients, LUTs, and minor L2+ algorithm enhancements is planned for early CY 2026. SPADES has also been selected by the Office of Dissemination (DIS) as a candidate for potential transition from IDP into the new Dissemination Cloud, aligning with cloud migration priorities for SWPC, NCO, DIS, and NWS, and supporting future L2 algorithm T2O.

For more information, please contact Derek VanPelt or Matt Comerford with any questions.

Satellite Book Club

The SBC Seminar Series convenes weekly at a new time - Thursdays at 1:00 PM ET - and provides a forum for forecasters and scientists across NWS and the broader NOAA satellite community to share topics of interest. Discussions may include operational applications of satellite data, updates to polar and geostationary satellite programs, and other satellite-related developments relevant to the field.

If you would like to receive information on upcoming presentations, posted recordings, and other updates for the SBC Seminar Series, you can subscribe in the form linked here.  SBC sessions are held via Google Meet, and the meeting room can be found here.

Recent and Upcoming Sessions

If you have a question, would like to submit a request or suggest an edit to our existing pages, please use this short form. Submissions are anonymous unless an email is optionally provided.

Happy Holidays! See you in the new year!

This message is intended for NWS users of satellite data and other stakeholders. Please let us know if you would like to unsubscribe.