Taiwan's First Lunar Mission Poised for launch Last of this Year

Space News ,Taiwan :- In a groundbreaking announcement on Monday, Taiwan's National Central University unveiled the country's inaugural lunar mission. As reported by Central News Agency Taiwan, the university disclosed details about the Deep Space Radiation Probe (DSRP), a project developed by its faculty and students. The DSRP is set to launch from Japan in the fourth quarter of this year.

Chair of the Department of Space Science and Engineering at National Central University, Loren Chang, highlighted the challenges of deep space, emphasizing the severe radiation conditions over 2,000 kilometers from Earth, affecting both life forms and technological products.

Weighing 400 grams and slightly larger than the size of a hand, the DSRP is engineered to explore the radiation environment in deep space during its four-month journey to the moon. The findings will serve as a valuable reference for future space missions and the design of space and electronic products.

Following successful ground tests demonstrating radiation tolerance, the DSRP was transported to Japan's JAXA Tsukuba Space Center in December of the previous year. It will be integrated into the lunar lander HAKUTO-R Mission 2, developed by ispace, a Japanese private lunar exploration company and a partner in this mission.

When asked about his emotions, Chang expressed a mix of excitement and nervousness regarding the upcoming mission, emphasizing confidence in the project's design and verification process. He stated, "We're sure that through this entire process, we'll learn a lot more that will be beneficial for future missions."

Central News Agency Taiwan reported on the challenges faced during the 21-month development period, with Chang highlighting time constraints as a significant factor. Despite facing multiple iterations and revisions, the DSRP has evolved into its fifth version.

Chou Yi-hsuan, a fourth-year student in the Department of Space Science and Engineering, shared insights gained from the verification stage, addressing issues related to low temperature and abnormalities under vacuum conditions. She expressed happiness and satisfaction upon delivering the DSRP in Japan, stating, "We were really happy when we finally went to Japan as it was something we had been working on for two years, and we could finally deliver our project."