WEATHER
New satellites pending
The launch date for FORMOSAT-5, a remote-sensing satellite, is scheduled for 2014, while 12 meteorological satellites under the FORMOSAT-7 program are scheduled to be launched in 2015 and 2017, the Hsinchu-based National Space Organization (NSO) said yesterday. The satellites under the FORMOSAT-7 program, a joint venture between Taiwan and the US, will be launched at two different times because of limited staff and testing facilities, the NSO said. NSO deputy director-general Yu Shiann-jeng (余憲政) said that because the organization was currently carrying out the FORMOSAT-5 program, it is unable to test the 12 FORMOSAT-7 satellites. Six of the meteorological satellites under the FORMOSAT-7 program, designed to gather weather data in low-latitude regions, will be launched in 2015, while six other high--latitude meteorological satellites will be launched in 2017, Yu said. A satellite designed and manufactured in Taiwan will also be launched in 2017, he said, adding that Taiwan would benefit from more accurate weather information once the FORMOSAT-7 satellites were in orbit.
WEATHER
Tamsui sees mercury drop
New Taipei City’s (新北市) Tamsui District (淡水) reported a low of 8.6oC early yesterday after a cold spell that hit the country on Friday brought temperatures down nationwide, the Central Weather Bureau said. Temperatures were estimated to fall to between 10oC and 12oC last night. Although the impact of the cold front was forecast to weaken today, the bureau said temperatures would not show obvious signs of improvement because cloud cover would remain thick in the north and there would be moist air in the east. The bureau said daytime temperatures could return to between 20oC and 22oC in central and southern Taiwan today.
SOCIETY
Education initiative to begin
Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) and World Vision Taiwan announced an initiative that will begin on Sunday to raise money to help impoverished children and youth in Taiwan pay their school fees. Donation boxes will be set up at THSR stations and donation envelopes will be available on trains until March 5. This year, when the first fundraiser was held, more than NT$23 million (US$759,000) was donated to the charity, helping more than 7,200 children and young people attend school, World Vision Taiwan president Tu Ming-han (杜明翰) said. “The weather might be cold today, but the hearts of many are warm in this love-filled Christmas holiday,” he said.
POST
Alishan stamps issued
State-run Chunghwa Post Co issued a commemorative sheet of postage stamps yesterday to mark the 100th anniversary of the Alishan Forest Railway. The stamps, in NT$5 and NT$25 denominations, feature the narrow-gauge mountain railway and the trains that run on it, and were designed by railway expert Su Chao-hsu (蘇昭旭) and railway enthusiast Tseng Kai-chih (曾凱智). The last time Chunghwa Post issued commemorative stamps for the Alishan railway was in 1992. Meanwhile, a documentary and book on the development of the railway were unveiled at a ceremony held at Pei-men Station in Chiayi City as part of the railway’s centenary celebrations. Chiayi Forest District Office said it took two years to complete the book and documentary and the process included conducting field studies, collecting historical photographs and raw data and interviewing elderly residents.
A free exhibition aimed at teaching the public about air-raid shelters and basic emergency personal protection skills today opened on the concourse level of the Taipei MRT's Ximen Station. The event, organized by the National Police Agency, aims to raise awareness about disaster preparedness ahead of nationwide air raid drills scheduled from July 15 to 18, which are part of broader urban resilience exercises. The exhibition outlines the recommended actions people should take depending on whether they are indoors, commuting or outdoors when air-raid sirens sound. It also teaches people how to equip air-raid shelters and pack emergency "go bags," with displays
A first shipment of five tons of Taiwan tilapia was sent from Tainan to Singapore on Wednesday, following an order valued at NT$600,000 (US$20,500) placed with a company in the city. The products, including frozen whole fish and pre- cooked fish belly, were dispatched from Jiangjun Fishing Harbor, where a new aquatic processing and logistics center is under construction. At the launch, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) called the move a “breakthrough,” marking Taiwan’s expansion into the Singaporean tilapia market. Taiwan’s tilapia exports have traditionally focused on the United States, Canada, and the Middle East, Huang said, adding that the new foothold in
An electric bus charging facility at Taipei Metro’s Beitou Depot officially opened yesterday with 22 charging bays to serve the city’s 886 electric buses. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) told a ceremony to mark the opening of the facility that the city aims to fully electrify its bus fleet by 2030. The number of electric buses has grown from about 650 last year to 886 this year and is expected to surpass 1,000 by the end of the year, Chiang said. Setting up the charging station in a metro depot optimizes land and energy use, as the metro uses power mainly during the
An exhibition demonstrating the rejuvenation of the indigenous Kuskus Village in Pingtung County’s Mudan Township (牡丹) opened at the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency’s conservation station in Taipei on Thursday. Agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) said they have been promoting the use and development of forestry resources to local indigenous residents for eight years to drive regional revitalization. While modern conservation approaches mostly stem from western scientific research, eco-friendly knowledge and skills passed down through generations of indigenous people, who have lived in Taiwan for centuries, could be more suitable for the environment, he said. The agency’s Pingtung branch Director-General Yang Jui-fen (楊瑞芬)
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