Recent NOAA-SARSAT News & Press Releases

2008 Press Releases

• 31 October, 2008: SARSAT Makes 6,000^th Rescue in the United States

• 4 June, 2008: NOAA Satellites Primed for Spike in Summer Distress Calls

• 11 April, 2008: NOAA Satellites Help Save 23 People in the North Atlantic

• 17 January, 2008: NOAA Satellites Help Rescue 353 People in 2007 - Emergency Beacons to Soon Operate Under New Frequency

2007 Press Releases

• 19 October, 2007: SARSAT TURNS 25

o Photos of the 25^th Anniversary Reception at the US State Department’s Benjamin Franklin Diplomatic Reception Room on 29 October, 2007

• 31 May, 2007: NOAA SATELLITES READY FOR SPIKE IN SPRING, SUMMER DISTRESS CALLS

• 11 January, 2007: NOAA SATELLITES HELP SAVE 272 PEOPLE IN 2006

2006 Press Releases

• 05 July, 2006: NOAA Satellites Respond to Distress Calls

• 20 January, 2006: NOAA Satellites Play Key Role in 222 Rescues in 2005; More Beacons Registered During the Year

2005 Press Releases

• 21 December, 2005: NOAA SATELLITES HELP KEEP COMPETITIVE SAILORS SAFE

• 15 June 2005: SARSAT Lives Rescued Tops 5000 in U.S.

• 05 May 2005: NOAA Satellites Aid In 36 U.S. Rescues Through April of 2005

• 01 February 2005: NOAA Satellites Play Key Role in 260 Rescues in 2004 – More People Purchasing Emergency Beacons

2004 Press Releases

• 22 September 2004: NOAA Satellites, Emergency Beacon Save Lives Off Florida Coast

• 15 July 2004: NOAA Satellites Help Save 54 Lives During Spring 2004

• 08 April 2004: NOAA Satellites Play Key Role in 60 Rescues, So Far in ‘04

• 12 March 2004: NOAA Satellites Help Rescue 10 Boaters in Distress

• 22 January 2004: NOAA Satellites Aid In 224 Rescues In 2003

2003 Press Releases

• 21 November 2003: SARSAT Caps Busy Week with Life-saving Rescue Operations

· 17 November 2003: First Save in Contiguous United States To Use a Personal Locator Beacon

· 04 September 2003: Emergency Beacon Registration Now Available Online

· 17 July 2003: NOAA Search and Rescue Satellites Save Fishermen’s Lives

· 01 July 2003: Emergency Personal Locator Beacon System Becomes Operational Nationwide

· 01 June 2003: NOAA and U.S. Air Force Kickoff Awareness Campaign for Personal Locator Beacons

· 06 February 2003: Seven Rescued From Life Raft After Abandoning Ship Off The New Jersey Coast

· 15 January 2003: 171 People Rescued in the U.S. in 2002 With Help From NOAA Satellites

2002 Press Releases

· 16 October 2002: Hikers And Outdoor Adventurers To Have Same Satellite Protection As Pilots and Mariners

· 16 October 2002:  NOAA and its Partners Celebrate 20th Anniversary of International Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking Program

· 23 September 2002:  NOAA Satellites Help Save Hiker From Blizzard On Utah Mountainside

· 30 July 2002:  NOAA Satellites Help Save Man, Son, And Their Dog From Gulf Of Alaska Waters

· 26 February 2002:  NOAA Satellites Help Save Four Sailors From Atlantic Ocean

· 01 February 2002:  NOAA Satellites Help Rescue 166 People In U.S. In 2001

· 10 January 2002:  NOAA Satellites Help Save Six Fishermen from Atlantic Ocean

Other Press Releases

· 03 November 2000:  SATELLITE PROCESSING OF 121.5/243 MHz EMERGENCY BEACONS TO BE TERMINATED ON FEB. 1, 2009

All media inquiries on the Cospas-Sarsat Program and/or NOAA can be directed to:

Mr. John Leslie
NOAA Public Affairs
SSMC-1
1335 East-West Highway, #7411
Silver Spring, Md. 20910
Phone: 301-713-2087
email: John.Leslie@noaa.gov

Media Synopsis:

Satellite Based Search and Rescue: The International Cospas-Sarsat Program

The Commerce Department's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) operates a series of satellites in low-earth and geostationary orbits to detect and locate aviators, mariners and land-based users in distress. The satellites, along with a network of ground stations, and the U.S. Mission Control Center in Suitland, MD are part of the International Cospas-Sarsat Program, whose mission is to relay distress signals to the international search and rescue community. 

Emergency beacons are used to transmit distress signals on the 406 MHz frequency to a constellation of Cospas-Sarsat satellites (and transmit low-power 121.5 MHz signals for close-range homing). Ground stations track these satellites and process the 406 MHz distress signals to obtain a location (using Doppler-Locating technology) of the distress. The processed information is then forwarded to a Mission Control Center where it is combined with other location and registration information and passed to the appropriate search and rescue authorities. Alternatively, some beacons operating at the 406 MHz frequency can use the Global Positioning System (GPS) to obtain a very accurate position. This position can then be transmitted as part of the distress signal.

The Cospas-Sarsat program is operated in the United States by NOAA, the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Air Force and NASA. Since the inception of the system in 1982, over 24,500 lives have been rescued worldwide and over 6,000 lives have been rescued in the United States.