Taiwan’s domestically developed PARUS-T1 satellite was launched into space yesterday on SpaceX’s Transporter-12 rocket from the US Vandenberg Space Force Base in California to begin its 12-month technological mission.
The rideshare mission was declared a success at 11:09am (7:05pm Pacific Standard Time on Tuesday), the Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) said.
The PARUS-T1 is a domestically designed, manufactured and integrated CubeSat-class 3U satellite launched to test the maturity of Taiwanese satellites, the agency said.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Space Agency
It carried an experimental payload of telecommunications and systems to automatically identify ships.
The 3U-sized T1, T1A and T2 3U satellites and the 6U-sized T3 and T4 satellites share a common family of platforms developed under TASA’s PARUS program, it said.
Named after Sittiparus castaneoventris, a species of small birds endemic to Taiwan, the PARUS program’s aim is to develop compact and innovative satellite systems for the nation’s use, TASA said.
The SpaceX rocket deployed PARUS-T1 at an altitude of 515km in low Earth orbit 57 minutes after the launch, and the satellite deployed its solar panels and antenna 30 minutes after it entered orbit, it said.
PARUS-T1A, the PARUS T-1’s ill-lucked sibling, was lost in a failed launch of Space One’s KAIROS vehicle in Japan last month, TASA said.
Separately, the TASA and the Ministry of Environment yesterday unveiled a program to produce a constellation of air quality observation satellites to monitor air pollution over Taiwan, China and Southeast Asian nations.
The constellation would consist of four multispectral and hyperspectral device-equipped satellites to measure particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5), carbon dioxide and methane concentrations, officials told a news conference in Taipei.
The NT$6.1 billion (US$184.49 million) research and development program — which is expected to put its first satellite in orbit in three years — is to be implemented from next year to 2031, the officials said.
In addition, the ministry is conducting a program to monitor air pollution over Kaohsiung and Pingtung County in collaboration with NASA and researchers from Taiwan and the US, they said.
The 3D air pollution monitoring program makes use of readings from ground-based stations, drones, aircraft and satellites to analyze the distribution of pollutants and improve predictive modeling, they said.
The ministry is also applying Internet of Things and generative artificial intelligence technologies to locate air pollution sources, they added.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College