SST3 and FARCX-1, two research rockets developed by NYCU-led teams, completed flight tests at Pingtung Xuhai on the same day, with SST3 reaching 8.3 kilometers on solid propulsion and FARCX-1 completing Taiwan's first fully student-built liquid rocket flight at 532 meters, as the Xuhai site logged its 19th sounding rocket launch.
SST3 and FARCX-1, two research rockets developed by NYCU-led teams, completed flight tests at Pingtung Xuhai on the same day, with SST3 reaching 8.3 kilometers on solid propulsion and FARCX-1 completing Taiwan's first fully student-built liquid rocket flight at 532 meters, as the Xuhai site logged its 19th sounding rocket launch.
How do SST3 and FARCX-1 compare in specifications?
SST3 and FARCX-1 launched on the same day but differ in scale, propulsion type, and altitude reached.
SST3 measured 3.5 meters in length and reached a flight altitude of 8.3 kilometers, making it the largest solid-propulsion sounding rocket launched in Taiwan by an academic team to dateCITE:E1. FARCX-1 measured 4.1 meters in length and reached 532 meters on its first flight test, becoming the first fully student-developed liquid-propellant sounding rocket in Taiwan to complete a flightCITE:E2.
| Rocket | Length | Altitude Reached | Propulsion |
|---|
| SST3 | 3.5 m | 8.3 km | Solid — Pioneer-50K RNXCITE:E4 |
| FARCX-1 | 4.1 m | 532 m | Liquid — hydrogen peroxide + keroseneCITE:E6 |
What was SST3's development path and this year's flight test goal?
SST3 built on two prior NYCU (National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, 陽明交通大學) rockets, progressing from 1 kilometer in 2024 to 3 kilometers in 2025, with a 2026 target of 9 kilometers.
According to NYCU Institute of Space Science and Engineering assistant professor Wei Shih-hsin (魏世昕), SST3 continued the research line from the 2024 SSTO rocket, which reached 1 kilometer, and the 2025 SSTT rocket, which reached 3 kilometers, and this year raised the target altitude to 9 kilometers while successfully validating the propulsion system and structural strengthCITE:E5. The rocket used the Pioneer-50K RNX solid-fuel propulsion system and reached its maximum altitude of 8.3 kilometers 40 seconds after launchCITE:E4. Although the parachute did not deploy and the rocket was not recovered, it completed telemetry transmission through all key communication phasesCITE:E4.
Who made up the SST3 flight test team?
The SST3 flight test mission involved a 33-person team drawn from six organizations.
The team combined ARRC (Advanced Rocket Research Center), iSSE (Institute of Space Systems Engineering), ASARe Labs, the NYCU Department of Mechanical Engineering, the National Cheng Kung University (國立成功大學) Department of Mechanical Engineering, and the NYCU student team Formosan FoxCITE:E3.
How did FARCX-1's propulsion system perform on its first flight test?
FARCX-1 used a liquid-propellant system combining high-concentration hydrogen peroxide as oxidizer and kerosene as fuel, and its first flight test produced 3 seconds of propulsion and a peak altitude of 532 metersCITE:E6.
This first flight also marked FARCX-1 as the first fully student-developed liquid-propellant sounding rocket in Taiwan to complete a flight testCITE:E2.
Which teams participated in the FARCX-1 flight test?
FARCX-1's flight test brought together five groups: iSSE, ARRC, the NYCU Department of Mechanical Engineering, the NYCU student team Formosan Fox, and the National Central University (國立中央大學) ATLab teamCITE:E9.
What role does the Pingtung Xuhai launch site play, and what does the dual launch mean?
The Pingtung Xuhai short-term scientific rocket launch site (屏東旭海短期科研火箭發射場域) has hosted 19 sounding rocket launches to date, and SST3 and FARCX-1 both completed flight tests there on the same day.
Since its establishment, Xuhai has served as Taiwan's primary sounding rocket test site, completing 19 scientific sounding rocket launches so farCITE:E7. SST3 and FARCX-1, jointly led by NYCU's iSSE and ARRC, completed their flight tests there in succession on the same dayCITE:E10.
How does this connect to TASA's orbital rocket program?
TASA (Taiwan Space Agency) launched its orbital rocket development program in 2023 and continues to support academic rocket research and talent training.
With policy backing from the National Science and Technology Council, TASA has run the orbital rocket research and development program since 2023, and continues to support academic teams' technical research and rocket talent cultivationCITE:E8.
Taken together, the two flights mark progress along different technical tracks measured against the same evidence base: SST3's targeted altitude rose from 1 kilometer in 2024 to 3 kilometers in 2025 to a 9-kilometer target this year, and it reached 8.3 kilometers 40 seconds after launch on solid propulsion, though recovery was not completedCITE:E5CITE:E4. FARCX-1's first flight produced 3 seconds of propulsion and 532 meters of altitude on a liquid hydrogen-peroxide/kerosene systemCITE:E6. Both flights took place at the Xuhai site, which has now hosted 19 sounding rocket launchesCITE:E7, within the broader window of TASA's orbital rocket program running since 2023CITE:E8.