Academia Sinica, the nation’s top research institute, signed an agreement with a Japanese space research institution in Taipei on Friday to participate in a Japan-led mission that will study the physics of outer space near the Earth.
Signed by Academia Sinica president Wong Chi-huey (翁啟惠) and Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) director-general Saku Tsuneta, the five-year agreement represents the first formal space research mission in which Taiwan will work with a world-renowned space institution, Academia Sinica said in a statement.
In Taiwan, the project will be led by the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics in partnership with National Cheng Kung University.
The mission, called Exploration of Energization and Radiation in Geospace (ERG), involves a small scientific research satellite that will study the behavior of highly charged electrons in the magnetosphere, the region of outer space near the Earth.
That is where the Van Allen radiation belt captures a huge volume of the highly charged energy particles that are the focal point of the study.
Japanese scientists hope that data from the satellite will help them explain how these high-energy electrons are born as they generate and vanish repeatedly during space storms, and how space storms themselves develop.
The Taiwanese team will deliver one of the project’s five key instruments, an LEP-e analyzer that collects low-energy electron data, to help the ERG satellite observe the distribution of energy and density of low-energy electrons surrounding Earth, Academia Sinica said.
The other four instruments are middle and high-energy electron analyzers, and low and middle-energy ion analyzers.
With all the data collected, researchers “can paint a comprehensive picture of the magnetosphere,” said Wang Shiang-yu, a research fellow at Academia Sinica.
By paving the way for future international opportunities in space research, the agreement will allow Taiwanese scientists to access ERG data for advanced research in geospace physics and increase their world-class space research opportunities.
It will also strengthen Taiwan’s capability in building top-notch instruments for space science missions, Academia Sinica said.
Part of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), ISAS leads Japanese scientific satellite mission developments.
JAXA is one of the world’s major space agencies, together with NASA and the European Space Agency.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
RSS