NOAA GOES Solar X-Ray Imager API

The service provides download access to data from the Solar X-ray Imager (SXI) service from the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) of the U.S. National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA). It provides search against an archive of processed or unprocessed images, which applications can download in a selection of file formats.

API methods support specification of the image type (raw or processed data and output file format) along with varied parameters such as the satellite number that generated the image, the sort of solar phenomenon documented, filter wavelength, and the time the image was generated as well as the exposure time.

The web service response contains a bunch of URLs that point to the SXI images. Users can choose to view the images, download a copy to their local machine or process the images using external software. The response is returned in the format specified by the users while constructing the HTTP request URL. The supported response formats include XML, JSON (JavaScript Object Notation), Text and HTML. The HTTP request URL works well in a browser, on a command line and in a program code.