(AP)—The U.S. weather satellite that tracks the East Coast and Atlantic hurricanes is broken.

Meteorologists are scrambling to fill in lost data for forecasters with a spare satellite and help from a European satellite.

spokesman Scott Smullen said engineers shut down the East Coast satellite on Sunday because of vibrations. They're still trying to diagnose the problem.

Smullen said there may be a slight decrease in the accuracy of weather forecasts. NOAA is checking to see if it will affect hurricane forecasting.

The $500 million satellite was launched in 2006, but it wasn't used regularly to monitor weather until 2010.

More information: NOAA: