The Taiwan-made PARUS-T1 CubeSat, designed by the Taiwan Space Agency TASA,
was successfully launched into orbit early Wednesday aboard a SpaceX rocket
from California.

The satellite is now positioned 515 kilometers above Earth in Low-Earth Orbit.

30 minutes after deployment, the CubeSat deployed its dish and solar panel
and made contact with TASA's ground station.

PARUS-T1 will undergo testing for communication systems, ship tracking, and
other autonomous functions during its planned one-year mission.

This marks a significant step in Taiwan's space program, as the satellite was
entirely designed, assembled, and tested domestically.

TASA says the project aims to create a standardized CubeSat platform to boost
Taiwan's space industry and speed up research and development for academic
and industrial partners.

The satellite is named after Taiwan's chestnut-bellied tit, symbolizing
agility and ambition in space exploration.