A Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) Falcon 9 rocket on Friday carried two Taiwan-developed satellites into orbit, along with 114 others, the Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) said.
The two “cube satellites” or CubeSats — Toro and Nightjar — were launched into space at 11:56am from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on the Transporter-11 rideshare mission, TASA said.
Toro and Nightjar entered orbit at about 2:30pm, the agency said.
Photo: Screen grab from livestream via the Taiwan Space Agency
CubeSats are a class of small satellites made up of multiple cubic modules each measuring 10cm on a side and weighing up to 1.3kg that have a wide range of applications and are increasingly relevant in the aerospace industry.
Toro and Nightjar are both 30cm by 10cm by 10cm, TASA said.
Compared with traditional satellites, the CubeSats business has a relatively low entry threshold in terms of cost and technology. As they are smaller and lighter, a rocket is able to carry many CubeSats at the same time, making them a good option for those in the private sector wanting to enter the aerospace industry.
Toro, which was developed by satellite communications product supplier Pyras Technology Inc (芳興科技), carries a payload of cameras that are to photograph the ocean over four hot spots in the equatorial region to analyze changes in the water’s color and enable the completion of fishing ground positioning, TASA said.
Thanks to Toro, Taiwan’s aerospace technologies are expected to serve the country’s fishing industry well, using positioning technologies, marine communications and fleet management, as Pyras Technology has worked hard conducting field surveys in oceans to meet market needs, the agency said.
Toro is expected to help the fishing industry find ocean resources, it added.
Pyras Technology has been working on developing satellites, such as Formosat-1, with TASA since the 1990s, when it was called the National Space Organization, the agency said.
Pyras Technology has also worked with foreign space and military organizations to develop satellite components, TASA said.
Nightjar, developed by antenna designer and radio frequency testing manufacturer Rapidtek Technologies Inc (鐳洋科技), carries a payload of Ku-band high-speed Internet of Things communications services, and its mission is to test communication links between satellites and fixed user terminals or high-speed moving user terminals on the ground, TASA said.
If the two CubeSats work well and get certified, it would open the door for Taiwan to develop satellite engineering and compete in the commercial aerospace industry, it said.
TASA in 2022 launched a 10-year satellite innovation program focusing on the development of CubeSats. The program has four phases. Pyras Technology and Rapidtek Technologies are part of the second phase of three years, which started last year. The first phase was a one-year preparation phase. The third and fourth phases are to last three years each.
The two companies and Tron Future Tech Inc (創未來科技), which provides active electronically scanned array technologies for communications equipment, are developing larger CubeSats that are 40cm by 20cm by 20cm.
The launch of the first of these CubeSats is scheduled for next year, TASA said.
In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) quoted the Taiwanese song One Small Umbrella (一支小雨傘) to describe his nation’s situation. Wong’s use of such a song shows Singapore’s familiarity with Taiwan’s culture and is a perfect reflection of exchanges between the two nations, Representative to Singapore Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) said yesterday in a post on Facebook. Wong quoted the song, saying: “As the rain gets heavier, I will take care of you, and you,” in Mandarin, using it as a metaphor for Singaporeans coming together to face challenges. Other Singaporean politicians have also used Taiwanese songs
NORTHERN STRIKE: Taiwanese military personnel have been training ‘in strategic and tactical battle operations’ in Michigan, a former US diplomat said More than 500 Taiwanese troops participated in this year’s Northern Strike military exercise held at Lake Michigan by the US, a Pentagon-run news outlet reported yesterday. The Michigan National Guard-sponsored drill involved 7,500 military personnel from 36 nations and territories around the world, the Stars and Stripes said. This year’s edition of Northern Strike, which concluded on Sunday, simulated a war in the Indo-Pacific region in a departure from its traditional European focus, it said. The change indicated a greater shift in the US armed forces’ attention to a potential conflict in Asia, it added. Citing a briefing by a Michigan National Guard senior
CHIPMAKING INVESTMENT: J.W. Kuo told legislators that Department of Investment Review approval would be needed were Washington to seek a TSMC board seat Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) yesterday said he received information about a possible US government investment in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and an assessment of the possible effect on the firm requires further discussion. If the US were to invest in TSMC, the plan would need to be reviewed by the Department of Investment Review, Kuo told reporters ahead of a hearing of the legislature’s Economics Committee. Kuo’s remarks came after US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Tuesday said that the US government is looking into the federal government taking equity stakes in computer chip manufacturers that
CLAMPING DOWN: At the preliminary stage on Jan. 1 next year, only core personnel of the military, the civil service and public schools would be subject to inspections Regular checks are to be conducted from next year to clamp down on military personnel, civil servants and public-school teachers with Chinese citizenship or Chinese household registration, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Article 9-1 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) stipulates that Taiwanese who obtain Chinese household registration or a Chinese passport would be deprived of their Taiwanese citizenship and lose their right to work in the military, public service or public schools, it said. To identify and prevent the illegal employment of holders of Chinese ID cards or
RSS