Agreements aim to boost satellite testing in Taiwan

Wed, Jul 24, 2019 page2

Agreements aim to boost satellite testing in Taiwan

EFFICIENCY: The NSPO had to ask US universities to conduct radiation testing on Taiwan’s satellites, which took time and cost hundreds of thousands of NT dollars
- By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporter
The National Space Organization (NSPO) yesterday signed memorandums of agreement with Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University to boost the nation’s capabilities in radiation testing of satellite components and space industry development.
The documents were signed by NSPO Director-General Lin Chun-liang (林俊良), the hospital’s Proton and Radiation Therapy Center convener Hung Ji-hong (洪志宏) and the university’s Institute for Radiological Research dean Tung Chuan-jong (董傳中).
Electronic components used in satellites have to be resistant to space radiation, which can disrupt electronic signals or cause systems to work incorrectly or even break down, the NSPO said.

From left, Chang Gung hospital Proton and Radiation Therapy Center convener Hung Ji-hong, National Space Organization Director-General Lin Chun-liang and the university’s Institute for Radiological Research dean Tung Chuan-jong at a news conference in Taipei yesterday announce a partnership between the organization and the school.

Photo: CNA

The hospital in November 2015 set a milestone in cancer treatment by putting four proton radiotherapy devices — the world’s most advanced — into clinical service, the organization said.
The hospital also set up a particle physics and beam delivery core laboratory for research purposes, such as electronic component testing, the NSPO said.

Radiation testing of satellite components in simulated space conditions include total radiation dose testing and proton radiation testing, NSPO Deputy Director-General Yu Shiann-jen (余憲政) said.
While total dose testing can be performed at National Tsing Hua University’s Nuclear Science and Technology Development Center, only the Atomic Energy Council’s Institute of Nuclear Energy Research can conduct proton radiation testing, but its facilities cannot meet the requirement of testing up to 150 mega-electron-volts (MeV), he said.
Previously, the NSPO had to ask foreign institutions, such as Texas A&M University or the University of California, Berkeley, to conduct tests, which took months and involved costs up to hundreds of thousands or even millions of New Taiwan dollars, he said.
The hospital’s facilities allow testing up to 150MeV, which would greatly improve the testing efficiency of locally developed components, Yu said.
The NSPO would serve as a consultant for Chang Gung institutions in matters related to space technology, while the institutions would charge component developers for testing, he said.
In related news, the NSPO is to exhibit key component models of remote sensing satellite Formosat-5 and the Triton microsatellite, part of the Formosat-7 array, in a technology show in Indonesia in September organized by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council.
Formosat-5, the nation’s first domestically developed satellite, was launched on Aug. 25, 2017, form California, the Triton weather satellite, of which most key components were developed by Taiwanese scientists, is scheduled to be launched in 2021.
Indonesia is a major player in space technology in Southeast Asia after India, and it also aspires for autonomous satellite development, Yu said, adding that the NSPO looks forward to more collaboration with the country.
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