U.S. research vessel to depart for Palau after 12 days in Taiwan

Taipei, Sept. 1 (CNA) U.S. naval research vessel Sally Ride will depart for Palau Monday to conduct oceanographic research after a 12-day port call in northern Taiwan for replenishment of supplies and replacement of instruments.

The R/V Sally Ride arrived in Keelung Port Aug. 22.

According to a statement from Taiwan's Maritime Port Bureau (MPB), the research ship's purpose was to carry out exchanges with Taipei-based National Taiwan University (NTU) and replenish supplies.

In addition, the vessel was being installed with SEA-POL radar, which can gather oceanic and atmospheric data within a radius of 100 kilometers, said Yang Yiing-jang (楊穎堅), a professor of oceanography at NTU, in an interview Sunday.

Yang has led the Ocean Researcher I, an NTU-managed research ship, on a joint mission with a U.S. research vessel in 2018, in which Taiwanese students and scientists boarded the U.S. vessel to study.

He said the two sides will continue this mode of interaction to strengthen cooperation between Taiwan and the U.S. in the field of science and research.

The R/V Sally Ride will head to waters around Palau to study atmospheric change, Yang added.

Meanwhile, James Moum, a professor of physical oceanography from Oregon State University, told CNA that ocean environment and climate change are closely related to each other and that researchers hope to set a direction for future studies on this mission.

Another researcher aboard the R/V Sally Ride said Taiwan's location is ideal for the replenishment of supplies and replacement of instruments for research vessels that conduct studies in the western Pacific Ocean, the Philippine Sea and even the South China Sea.

He said Taiwan is also suitable for typhoon and current observation and noted that Taiwanese scientists have made remarkable achievements in the field of atmospheric and oceanic studies.

The R/V Sally Ride is scheduled to return to Keelung Sept. 27 for another resupply after the research mission in Palau is concluded, according to the MPB.