Taiwan’s first domestically built rocket, the HAPITH-1, is to be launched in Taitung County on Thursday, developer Taiwan Innovative Space Inc (TiSPACE), said yesterday.
The rocket is to be launched at 6am in the county’s Nantian Village (南田), home to a community of Aboriginal Paiwan people, TiSPACE said, adding that the ceremony would include a traditional Paiwan blessing.
The HAPITH-1 was to be launched on Dec. 27 last year, but TiSPACE called the launch off due to protests by the Aboriginal community.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Innovative Space Inc
Since then, representatives of TiSPACE and government agencies have visited Nantian and talked with the residents, who have agreed to the launch on condition that their safety will not be at risk, village Warden Kao Fu-yuan (高富源) said.
The rocket’s launchpad has already been built and other preparations are being put in place, TiSPACE chairman Chen Yen-sen (陳彥升) said.
The rocket is expected to take 10 minutes to reach an altitude of 250km before falling back into the ocean between Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島), said Chen, a former NASA researcher.
If the launch is successful, it would break the world record for the highest altitude reached by a rocket with a hybrid engine, which is currently 120km, he said.
The hybrid-propellant rocket costs one-10th of a conventional rocket, which makes it highly competitive, Chen added.
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