GOES-N lifted off aboard a Boeing Delta 4 rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. at 6:11 pm EDT on May 24, 2006. After GOES-N reached its geosynchronous orbit of approximately 22,300 miles and a successful post-launch checkout was performed, the satellite was placed in an on-orbit storage mode where it will be able to more rapidly replace a failure of any existing operational GOES. The GOES-N satellite locates storms with four times greater accuracy.