Rocket scientist Wu Jong-shinn (吳宗信) is to lead the National Space Organization (NSPO) from Aug. 1, and his mission would be to establish a rocket launch site, the National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) said yesterday.
NSPO Director-General Lin Chun-liang (林俊良), who assumed office on Feb. 1, 2018, has said that he plans to return to his research position at National Chung Hsing University next month.
Wu, 57, is the director of National Chiao Tung University’s Advanced Rocket Research Center and is known for having a passion for rocket development, despite limited funding.
Taiwan should be able to launch satellites on its own, instead of relying on foreign rocket suppliers, Wu has said.
“My goal is to make Taiwan’s space technology and industry infrastructure better than ever, and have the space economy rooted in our motherland,” he has said.
Wu obtained his doctorate at the University of Michigan’s Department of Aerospace Engineering and his master’s degree from National Taiwan University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering.
In 2016, Wu founded Taiwan Innovative Space Inc (TiSPACE), the nation’s first commercial rocket company, but left in 2018 due to differences of opinion with the investors, he said.
The Ministry of Science and Technology, which oversees the NSPO, last year began planning a site to launch sounding rockets, after TiSPACE was accused of illegally building a launch pad in Taitung County.
Hoping to have the site at Syuhai Village (旭海) in Pingtung County’s Mudan Township (牡丹), the NSPO has been communicating with local Aboriginal communities to obtain their consent, NARL president Wu Kuang-chong (吳光鐘) said.
While satellites have been a staple of the nation’s space technology development over the past three decades, NARL aims to make up ground in the indispensable area of developing launch vehicles, he said.
Wu Jong-shinn would make great contributions, with his outstanding research achievements and his understanding of the “ecology” of the NSPO, Wu Kuang-chong added.
While some people are waiting to see if the disagreement between Wu Jong-shinn and TiSPACE will affect his judgement, Wu Kuang-chong said that he believes Wu Jong-shinn would distinguish fairly between public and private businesses.
Wu Jong-shinn's industrial experience would be a boon for the NSPO, as he knows more about industrial needs than many previous directors, a space scientist said separately, on condition of anonymity.
However, it might not be easy to make the development of launch rockets a formal policy, as the government has been under pressure from the US to avoid doing so, the scientist said.
Wu Jong-shinn plans to launch a HTTP-3A hybrid-propellant rocket by this summer.
Before Wu Jong-shinn's appointment, NSPO Deputy Director-General Yu Shiann-jeng (余憲政) is to serve as acting head.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
STATS: Taiwan’s average life expectancy of 80.77 years was lower than that of Japan, Singapore and South Korea, but higher than in China, Malaysia and Indonesia Taiwan’s average life expectancy last year increased to 80.77 years, but was still not back to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak of 81.32 years in 2020, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. The average life expectancy last year increased the 0.54 years from 2023, the ministry said in a statement. For men and women, the average life expectancy last year was 77.42 years and 84.30 years respectively, up 0.48 years and 0.56 years from the previous year. Taiwan’s average life expectancy peaked at 81.32 years in 2020, as the nation was relatively unaffected by the pandemic that year. The metric
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck Chiayi County at 4:37pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 36.3km southeast of Chiayi County Hall at a depth of 10.4km, CWA data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Chiayi County, Tainan and Kaohsiung on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Pingtung, Taitung, Hualien, Changhua, Nantou and Penghu counties, the data
RSS