This article has been updated because it was previously inaccurate. NASA built and launched the GOES satellite, and NOAA owns and operates the GOES satellite.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite Network (GOES) captured many natural phenomena above Earth this year, including extreme snowfall, wildfires, volcanoes, and numerous aurora borealis.
NOAA’s GOES satellite serves as the “eyes in the sky” monitoring weather in the Western Hemisphere, continuously transmitting high-resolution images and data for weather forecasting, severe storm tracking, fire monitoring, and space weather forecasting.
Below is a sample of some of the great images taken this year.
January 2025: Rare snowstorm blankets southern United States
An arctic blast hit the southeastern United States on January 21, coinciding with the coldest period of the year. In addition to bringing record-low temperatures, it also triggered a winter storm that caused extreme snowfall in some southern states, according to NOAA Climate.gov. NOAA’s GOES-16 satellite captured the snow-covered southeastern United States.
July 2025: Historic Grand Canyon Lodge destroyed by Dragon Bravo fire
On July 4, NOAA’s GOES-18 satellite captured the Dragon Bravo fire in Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park, which started with a lightning strike and quickly became a roaring wildfire. The fire destroyed more than 70 historic buildings, including the iconic Grand Canyon Lodge.
July 2025: Catastrophic flooding occurs in central Texas.
On the night of July 3 and early morning of July 4, the GOES-19 satellite captured the convergence of severe storms and waterway flooding that caused devastating flooding that claimed dozens of lives across central Texas. The system brought even heavier rain to areas west of Kerrville, Texas. A large amount of rain fell in just a few hours, with some areas receiving more than 12 inches in a short period of time. As a result, more than 135 people lost their lives.
September 2025: Aurora
On September 30, three NOAA satellites captured a dazzling sight of aurora borealis (also known as the aurora borealis), caused by intense solar activity during the sun’s 11-year solar cycle, along the U.S.-Canada border. In mid-November, a significant geomagnetic storm occurred, making the phenomenon brightly colored and widely visible in the southern United States.
December 2025: Erupting volcanoes and atmospheric rivers
active volcano in hawaii: According to the Hawaii Volcano Observatory, Kilauea, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, has been erupting since December 23, 2024. The volcano became very active in December, producing intense lava fountains. NOAA’s GOES satellite captured this image of Kilauea’s eruption on December 6th and December 7th.
Atmospheric rivers impact the Pacific Northwest: Washington and the West Coast are dealing with a series of atmospheric rivers that flood regions with heavy rain. This pattern is sometimes called “Pineapple Express” because it originates from the area around Hawaii. Rainfall totals exceeded 12 inches in the Olympic Mountains and Washington Cascades, according to AccuWeather, leading to the threat of flooding and mudslides in some areas.
Source: NOAA, CIR, US TOD
