The 2017 Atlantic hurricane season has produced some of the most intense weather events seen in generations. Amidst the destruction, NOAA’s new GOES 16 weather satellite has proved to be a vital addition to weather forecasting infrastructure, as demonstrated when Puerto Rico lost its land-based weather forecasting radar ahead of Hurricane Maria. GOES 16, part of NOAA’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite system, will become fully operational in November.