The nation’s first domestically developed satellite, Formosat-5, has taken images at the resolution it was designed to deliver, but only “when weather conditions are good,” Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) officials said yesterday, adding it has completed its mission of capturing satellite images of Taiwan.
The satellite was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Aug. 25 last year, but the first images it transmitted back in September last year were fuzzy and marred by light spots.
Since then, the National Space Organization (NSPO) has been working to improve its image quality using image processing software and by adjusting the satellite’s altitude, angle and the temperature of its imaging device.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
At a news conference in Taipei yesterday, project director Chang Ho-pen (張和本) said the satellite has achieved the resolution it was designed to produce — 2m for black-and-white images and 4m for color images — when the weather permits.
“For example, the satellite images taken from above China and from above California can be very different when the former has serious air pollution,” Chang said.
Yet, the NSPO has not quantified what weather conditions would allow the satellite to transmit images at its default resolution, he added.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
The satellite’s images have already proven sufficient in supporting the nation’s disaster prevention missions, and would be available on the organization’s Web site from September, he said, adding that the US, Japan, Russia and Australia have expressed an interest in purchasing the images.
Asked if Formosat-5’s performance has achieved the ministry’s objectives, Chang said “yes,” while Minister of Science and Technology Chen Liang-gee (陳良基) gave a more reserved response.
The imaging capabilities of Formosate-5 have surpassed those of Formosat-2, which has a 2m resolution for monochromatic images and 8m for colored ones, Chen said.
However, when compared with the US Army’s stricter requirements, it only achieves a 3m resolution for black-and-white images and 5m for colored ones, he said.
As the NSPO is planning to launch one satellite per year in the following 10 years, it will pay more attention to the mechanical adjustment and microwave sensing capabilities of satellites, Chen said.
Meanwhile, Formosat-5, which passes over the same spot on Earth every two days, has finished taking remote images of Taiwan during its orbits between September and December last year, he said.
The ministry presented a complete satellite image of Taiwan to President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday, with Tsai promising to support its space programs, Chen added.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS