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Iran on Sunday successfully launched three satellites into space altogether. According to state-run IRNA news agency, the satellites were carried by the two-stage Simorgh (Phoenix) rocket, which has had multiple failures in the past. The Simorgh is a two-stage, liquid-fueled rocket the Iranians described as being designed to place satellites into a low Earth orbit.
“Three Iranian satellites have been successfully launched into orbit for the first time,” state TV reported.
Iran launched the three satellites into a minimum orbit of 450 kilometres (280 miles).
Iranian satellite Mahda, which weighs around 32 kilogrammes and was developed by Iran’s Space Agency, is designed to test advanced satellite subsystems.
The other two satellites- Kayhan 2 and Hatef, weigh under 10 kilogrammes each and are aimed to test space-based positioning technology and narrowband communication.
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Last week, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sent the research satellite Soraya into space. However, Britain, France, and Germany condemned that launch. Notably West has repeatedly warned Iran against such launches, saying the same technology can be used for ballistic missiles, including ones designed to deliver a nuclear warhead.
For instance, in 2020, Iran’s first military satellite launch, Nour-1 drew a sharp rebuke from the US. The US said Iran’s satellite launches defy a UN Security Council resolution and called on Tehran to undertake no activity involving ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons. UN sanctions related to Iran’s ballistic missile program expired last October.
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Iran has countered that it is not seeking nuclear weapons and that its satellite and rocket launches are for civil or defence purposes only.
Tehran maintains the largest arsenal of ballistic missiles in the Mideast, in part due to decades of sanctions following its 1979 Islamic Revolution and the US Embassy hostage crisis blocking it from advanced fighter jets and other weapon systems.
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Published: 28 Jan 2024, 01:37 PM IST
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