SOLAR-1 reaches Lagrange point 1, beginning NOAA’s new operational era in space-weather observation
A new operational space-weather satellite, named SOLAR-1, took position between Earth and the Sun on January 23, 2026, about 1.6 million km (1 million miles) from Earth. The observatory begins the transition of U.S. space-weather monitoring from research missions to continuous hazard surveillance, enabling earlier detection of solar storms that can affect satellites, communications, and power systems.










