Floater

In meteorology, a floater is a satellite image that is focused on a particular event or location, normally a tropical cyclone or a disturbance. This is achieved by the use of cameras on geostationary satellites (also known as geosynchronous satellites) which orbit the Earth at the same rate the Earth rotates. As a result, the satellite "looks" at the same area constantly. This can be particularly useful in monitoring tropical systems because they will not exit the viewing frame or the camera.

Use
Floater images can be used for monitoring and tracking of weather systems, especially tropical cyclones. Floater imagery can be found at the Satellite Services Department of NOAA. All floaters hosted by the SSD have 11 different types of enhancements which emphasize different aspects of the targeted focus.

Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES)
Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites, commonly known as GOES, are a famous group of geostationary satellites that are used to take floater images and monitor the weather. GOES 1, the first GOES satellite, was launched on October 16, 1975. Since then, 15 additional satellites have been launched, but today only 4 satellites, GOES 12 to 15, are in service. Today, GOES satellites are an important part of weather forecasting and monitoring.

Coverage Zones
Today 4 GOES satellites are still in operation and cover specific areas of Earth. Keep in mind that each of them orbit far enough from the Earth so that they can view the entire disk.
 * GOES 12 (GOES South): 90 to 75 degrees west
 * GOES 13 (GOES East): 75 wesst
 * GOES 14: 89.5 west
 * GOES 15 (GOES West):