Equipped with a special solar telescope to monitor the sun’s corona and multiple instruments which measure the solar wind in real-time, NOAA’s Lagrange 1 (SWFO-L1) will detect space weather activity by monitoring the sun and near-Earth environment. SWFO-L1 will monitor solar wind disturbances and track Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) before they encounter Earth. SWFO-L1 observatory will be launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in September.
SWFO-L1 Road to Launch and Journey Timeline
January 2025: Completed end-to-end testing
February 2025: Began storage period
March – September 2025: Mission rehearsals conducted
July 2025: SWFO-L1 observatory arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
NET September 2025:
Encapsulate observatory in the rocket fairing
Roll out to launch pad
Launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
January 2026: Arrival at Lagrange Point 1, nearly 1 million miles from Earth
March 2026: Commissioning complete, transitioning from development and launch to observatory’s operational phase
Image/NOAA
SWFO-L1 will transmit 24/7 Solar Data to earth recipients fair warning to take necessary actions to protect vital infrastructure, economic interests and national security both on Earth and for space interests. SWFO-L1 will detect disruptive space weather events before they happen:
As an operational observatory, SWFO-L1 will deliver real-time data to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), enabling faster and more accurate forecasts, watches, and warnings. This critical information helps protect the nation’s power grid, communication and navigation systems, and supports the safety of astronauts and space-based infrastructure.
SWFO-L1 will eventually be situated approximately million miles from Earth at what is scientifically called the Lagrange point 1. monitor solar wind disturbances and track Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) before they reach Earth.
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SWFO-L1 is American made. The spacecraft and instruments were designed and developed with public and private sector entities collaboration:
Observatory assembled and spacecraft built by BAE Systems in Boulder, CO
Compact Coronagraph (CCOR-2) by U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC
Solar Wind Plasma Sensor (SWiPS) by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in San Antonio, TX
SupraThermal Ion Sensor (STIS) by University of California in Berkeley, CA
Magnetometer (MAG) by University of New Hampshire in Durham, NH and SwRI in San Antonio, TX
