Sixty percent of the budget proposed by the National Science Council (NSC) for the ROCSAT-3 (
The National Science Council had asked for about NT$260 million in funding for the ROCSAT-3 project next year.
But legislators of the Sci-tech and Information Committee slashed NT$160 million off that request, or about 60 percent of the proposal.
NSC Vice Chairman Hsieh Ching-chih (
"We estimate that the completion date will be extended for six months to one year," Hsieh said.
The ROCSAT-3 program is a collaboration between University Corporation for Atmospheric Research of the US and the the National Space Program Office under the NSC to develop a constellation of eight low-earth orbiting satellites for weather prediction, space weather monitoring and climate research.
The launch date of the satellites was previously scheduled for late 2002.
"Some of us want to cut a great part of the budget because the achieved percentage of scheduled progress of the project has fallen behind seriously," KMT legislator Ting Shou-chung (
Ting said that about NT$200 million in budget funds arranged for the project last year had not yet been consumed.
KMT legislator Chen Ching-pao (
"In addition, I suggest taking out 30 percent of total budget arranged by the central government because Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (
Chen said that NT$510 billion was about 30 percent of the total budget of the former KMT-led central government.
"If so, the total budget proposed by DPP-led central government should be about 70 percent of the budget arranged by the former KMT-led government. How come the total budget proposed by central government is NT$90 billion more than that proposed by the former government?" Chen said.
Other KMT legislators at the committee, however, did not side with Chen.
"Legislators should consider a diversity of goals to see if spending the money on such items is cost-effective," KMT legislator Ting told the media.
At the budget review meeting yesterday afternoon, legislators cut NT$0.5 billion out of the NT$14 billion budget for the national scientific technology development fund.
In addition, NT$1.9 billion in funds proposed for developing industrial-based parks will be reviewed by legislators at their floor meeting, planned to be held by the end of December.
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
POSSIBILITIES EMERGE: With Taiwan’s victory and Japan’s narrow win over Australia, Taiwan now have a chance to advance if South Korea also beat the Aussies Taiwan has high hopes that the national baseball team would advance to the World Baseball Classic (WBC) quarter-finals after clinching a crucial 5-4 victory over South Korea in a nail-biting extra-inning game at the Tokyo Dome yesterday. Boosted by three home runs — two solo shots by Yu Chang (張育成) and Cheng Tsung-che (鄭宗哲) and a two-run homer by Stuart Fairchild — the triumph gave Taiwan a much-needed second victory in the five-team Pool C, where only the top two finishers would advance to the knockout stage in Miami, Florida. Entering extra innings with the game tied at four apiece, Taiwan scored
MISSION OF PEACE: The foreign minister urged Beijing to respect Taiwan’s existence as an independent nation, and work together to ensure peace and stability in the region Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday rejected Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi’s (王毅) comments about Taiwan, criticizing China as a “troublemaker” in the international community and a disruptor of cross-strait peace. Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the Chinese National People’s Congress, Wang said that Taiwan has always been a territory of China and that it would be impossible for it to become its own country. The “return” of Taiwan to China was the natural outcome of the Chinese people’s resistance against Japan in World War II, and that any pursuit of independence was “doomed
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
RSS