As a FORMOSAT-2 follow-on program, the first NSPO self-reliantly designed satellite, FORMOSAT-5, is scheduled to be launched on August 25, 2017 (Taiwan Time) by SpaceX's Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Air Force base, California, USA. The 450-kg satellite will operate in a two-day revisit Sun-synchronous orbit at 720 km altitude and 98.28˚ inclination. FORMOSAT-5 will provide two-meter panchromatic and four-meter multi-spectrum images at various processing levels; also offer state-of-the-art ionospheric space science data for the geoscience researches.

Formosat-5 is the first satellite program in which the NSPO was fully responsible for as a system integrator. The mission objectives of FORMOSAT-5 are to 1) build up and demonstrate Taiwan's indigenous space technology on the remote sensing satellite, 2) continuously serve the global imagery user's community of FORMOSAT-2, and 3) promote the advanced space science research domestically. In addition to indigenous payloads development, NSPO is also responsible for the development of the key spacecraft components, ground control systems, and image processing systems. FORMOSAT-5 is to embark on a five-year observation mission around the globe. FORMOSAT-5's global coverage capability, smart agility feature, and pioneer of using a CMOS sensor for a commercial optical earth observation satellite will bring even broader research applications to the geoscience community.