Weather-monitoring satellites in orbit

Six weather satellites successfully reached orbit and were ready to begin their five-year mission to track hurricanes, monitor climate change and study space weather, it was announced on Saturday.

Six weather satellites successfully reached orbit and were ready to begin their five-year mission to track hurricanes, monitor climate change and study space weather, it was announced on Saturday.

The satellites were launched on on Friday evening from this Central Coast base. They were placed into orbit about 500 miles above Earth, where they separated to form a chain. The satellites will take about 2,500 daily measurements by using global positioning receivers to track radio signals passing through the atmosphere.

The information gathered will be used to enhance research and improve weather forecasting. Scientists hope the data will help them better track storms and monitor long-term climate change.

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