DistantNews
Support us
🇹🇼 Taiwan /Technology

Taiwanese universities launch rockets, setting new records

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

Translated from Chinese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement Outcome reported
  • Two research rockets, SST3 and FARCX-1, successfully launched from Pingtung, Taiwan, despite strong winds and rain.
  • The SST3 set a new record for the highest altitude reached by a solid-propellant sounding rocket developed by an academic institution in Taiwan, reaching 8.3 kilometers.
  • The FARCX-1, Taiwan's first liquid-propellant sounding rocket developed by students, reached 532 meters, bolstering the nation's space transport industry.

Despite challenging weather conditions, Taiwan's academic sector demonstrated its robust space ambitions with the successful launch of two research rockets from the Xuhai launch site in Pingtung. The National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU) and the Advanced Rocket Research Center (ARRC) spearheaded the launches of the SST3 and FARCX-1.

The SST3, a 3.5-meter-long rocket, soared to an altitude of 8.3 kilometers, establishing a new record for the largest solid-propellant sounding rocket developed by an academic institution in Taiwan. This achievement validates the propulsion system and structural integrity, providing a standardized system for the upcoming "Rocket Competition of Taiwan (RTC).

It was truly shocking and moving!

— Team members and observersDescribing their reaction to witnessing the rockets launch.

Adding another significant milestone, the 4.1-meter FARCX-1 became Taiwan's first liquid-propellant sounding rocket developed and successfully flight-tested by a student team. Although it reached an altitude of 532 meters, its successful test is a crucial step forward for Taiwan's space transport industry. Project lead Assistant Professor Wei Shih-hsin of NYCU's Institute of Space Systems Engineering highlighted the importance of these launches, emphasizing the continuous efforts to scale up capabilities and increase launch ranges.

The Xuhai launch site, operated by the National Space Organization (NSPO) under the National Science and Technology Council, has now hosted 19 successful missions. The successful flights of these two domestically developed rockets not only fill a critical gap in Taiwan's "space transport" capabilities but also solidify Xuhai's role as a cradle for top Taiwanese space talent and technology.

SST3 successfully verified the propulsion system and structural strength, which will provide a public version system for the future 'Rocket Competition of Taiwan (RTC)'; the liquid rocket FARCX-1, with its extremely high technical threshold, has taken a crucial step forward, and we will continue to scale up energy and increase launch range.

— Wei Shih-hsinAssistant Professor at NYCU's Institute of Space Systems Engineering and a key proponent of the project, explaining the significance of the rocket launches.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog