| Name of Satellite, Alternate Names | NOAA-18 (NOAA-N, COSPAS-SARSAT) |
| Country of Operator/Owner | USA |
| Operator/Owner | National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (part of international program) |
| Users | Government |
| Purpose | Meteorology |
| Class of Orbit | LEO |
| Type of Orbit | Sun-Synchronous |
| Longitude of GEO (degrees) | 0 |
| Perigee (km) | 843 |
| Apogee (km) | 864 |
| Eccentricity | 0.00145358898041116 |
| Inclination (degrees) | 99.1 |
| Period (minutes) | 102 |
| Launch Mass (kg.) | 2223 |
| Dry Mass (kg.) | 1500 |
| Power (watts) | 830 |
| Date of Launch | 20-05-2005 |
| Expected Lifetime | 3 yrs. |
| Contractor | Lockheed Martin Space Systems |
| Country of Contractor | USA |
| Launch Site | Vandenberg AFB |
| Launch Vehicle | Delta 2 |
| COSPAR Number | 2005-018A |
| NORAD Number | 28654 |
| Comments | Polar-orbiting satellite; lonGalaxy-range weather forecasting; atmospheric and weather monitoring instruments; data stored on-board and transmitted over Fairbanks, AK and Wallops Island, VA. |