New Southbound Policy Portal

Taiwan’s newest and largest ocean research vessel commissioned by the Ministry of Science and Technology was launched July 21 in the northern port city of Keelung, marking a milestone in the country’s domestic marine research development.
 
Manufactured by CSBC Corp. Taiwan, the 2,155-ton R/V New Ocean Researcher 1 will be used to advance atmospheric science and oceanography. It can carry 47 crew members on 40-day expeditions and will be operated by Taipei City-based National Taiwan University.
 
At the launch ceremony, President Tsai Ing-wen said the indigenously developed vessel is a testament to the country’s domestic shipbuilding program. It shows the government’s dedication to enhancing natural disaster response and sustainable ocean development through sophisticated data collection benefiting the international community, she added.
 
Under the MOST’s Sailing to the Blue Sea plan, the new ship is set to voyage from Kaohsiung City in southern Taiwan to Guam and Palau, Tsai said, adding that it will conduct surveys along the Mariana Trench and North Equatorial Current as well as typhoon formation zones in the Western Pacific.
 
According to the MOST, the ship will join R/V New Ocean Researcher 2 and 3, launched in Nov. 2019, in carrying out exploration and scientific missions. The vessels are expected to help boost cross-border research cooperation and cultivate local talent while promoting ocean sustainability, the ministry said.
 
Launched last November, the R/V New Ocean Researcher 2 and 3 are operated by National Taiwan Ocean University in northern Taiwan’s Keelung City and National Sun Yat-sen University in Kaohsiung City, respectively. (YCH-E)
 
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