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"PEARL" was successfully launched on November 12th aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 in the United States. Photo courtesy of SpaceX

The CubeSat "PEARL," jointly developed by National Central University and Hon Hai (Foxconn) Technology Group, was successfully launched aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9. It will conduct a year-long broadband communications experiment and space exploration, marking a new milestone for Taiwan's space technology!
 
The successful launch of "PEARL" comprised two CubeSats, namely PEARL-1C and PEARL-1H, with C and H representing the initials of NCU and Hon Hai Technology Group, respectively. The SpaceX Transporter-9 mission carried these satellites to a Sun-synchronous orbit 520 kilometers above the Earth's surface for deployment. Both CubeSats have a volume of 6U XL, making them the largest CubeSats in the country at present.
 
NCU President Jou Jing-Yang stated that since the Russo-Ukrainian War, low-orbit satellites have played a crucial role. NCU has substantially participated in three CubeSat missions, and with "PEARL," this number has reached five, a remarkable achievement symbolizing NCU's capabilities of independent research and the era of low-orbit satellites.


The CubeSat "PEARL," jointly developed by NCU and Hon Hai Technology Group, was successfully launched. Photo by Huang Jun-Wei


Models of CubeSat "PEARL" and the scientific payload of compact ionospheric probes (CIPs) were showcased. Photo by Huang Jun-Wei