TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s first locally made weather satellite Triton (獵風者) failed to achieve lift-off on Saturday morning (Oct. 7) during a scheduled launch.
Arianespace, the company that provided Triton’s rocket, said that the launch had been postponed just before 9:40 a.m. “The launcher and its satellites are in stable and safe conditions,” the post on X (formerly Twitter) read.
The Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) has yet to release a statement but did repost Arianespace’s message. Various reports said that either a rocket failed to fire or a signaling systems malfunction occurred.
The launch was scheduled for 9:36 a.m. Taiwan time at Guiana Space Center using Arianespace’s Vega C rocket. When it makes it to orbit, Triton will be able to provide nearly 70,000 observations of atmospheric and weather conditions in a single day, according to TASA.
Flight #VV23: Postponement of the launch. The launcher and its satellites are in stable and safe conditions. Stay tuned for further updates.
— Arianespace (@Arianespace) October 7, 2023
