The Ministry of Science and Technology yesterday announced plans to focus on the development of 10 small, high-resolution satellites for the third phase of the National Space Program.
The third phase, which is expected to cost NT$25.1 billion (US$814 million), was last month approved by Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌).
It was the first official document he signed after taking office.
Photo: Chien Hui-ju, Taipei Times
It is to be executed by the National Applied Research Laboratories and the National Space Organization (NSPO) over a 10-year period starting this year, the ministry said.
The initiative would focus on the development of six prototype high-resolution optical remote sensing satellites, two ultra-high resolution smart optics remote sensing satellites and two synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites, it said.
It would also focus on the development of remote sensing technology and the use of smaller satellites to achieve higher resolution images, Minister of Science and Technology Chen Liang-gee (陳良基) said.
Citing an example, Chen said an ultra-high resolution smart optics remote sensing satellite weighing about 200kg would give users a 35cm view of the ground from an altitude of 510km, which would be the equivalent of spotting a cat or a dog in Pingtung County’s Kenting (墾丁) area from the Taipei 101 building.
The ministry plans to launch one satellite a year, he said, adding that the first is expected to be launched in 18 months.
The achievements of the first and second phases would serve as the foundation for the third phase, Chen said.
He hopes that the National Space Program would encourage innovation in the field of science, he added.
The prototype high-resolution optical remote sensing satellite constellation, which is to include three sets of two satellites, would raise the frequency of Formosat-5’s revisit rate from once every two days to twice or three times a day, NSPO director-general Lin Chun-liang (林俊良) said.
This would allow the ministry to gather more images, which has positive implications for the implementation of government policies, rescue missions, disaster prevention and scientific research, he said.
Ultra-high resolution smart optics remote sensing satellites focus on sub-meter resolution images, Lin said.
SAR satellites, which are equipped with active radar, are unaffected by cloud cover, fog or rainfall, which means they can function no matter the weather conditions or time of day, he said.
Other plans for the third phase include space exploration and the development of a satellite capable of orbiting the moon, Lin added.
As Taiwan lacks experience in these areas, it hopes to achieve its goal of space exploration by partnering with domestic and foreign academia, he said.
Having a satellite orbiting the moon would be the first step, he said.
Researchers would also explore ways to land a satellite on the moon, Lin added.
Without the assistance of GPS on the moon, the satellite would need to guide its own landing, he said.
Asked about the launch date of Formosat-7, Lin said that as Taiwan is partnering with the US for the launch, it would need to wait for the US to notify them.
Formosat-7’s six satellites are on standby at the NSPO, and can be packaged and delivered to the US as soon as it receives notice from the US, he said.
The ministry plans to launch Formosat-7 this year and a weather satellite called the “wind hunter” next year, Chen said.
‘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 High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
RSS