Sept 14 (Askume) – Iran on Saturday launched a research satellite into orbit using a rocket built by the Revolutionary Guards, state media reported.
The launch comes as the United States and European countries accuse Iran of transferring ballistic missiles to Russia that could be used in a war with Ukraine within weeks. Iran denies this.
The Chamran-1 satellite launched by the Cham-100 satellite carrier has been placed in a 550-kilometre (340 mi) orbit and received its first signal, the media said, adding that the solid-fuel carrier was powered by the Revolution designed and manufactured by the Guards Aerospace Forces.
According to state media, the main mission of the 60-kilogram (132-pound) satellite is “to test hardware and software systems to demonstrate the altitude and phase of orbital maneuvering technology.”
In January this year, Iranian media reported that the Sorayya satellite was launched into a 750-kilometre orbit, the country’s highest orbit to date.
The US military claims that the long-range ballistic technology used to put the satellites into orbit could also enable Tehran to launch long-range weapons, possibly including nuclear weapons.
Tehran denies that its satellite activities are a cover for ballistic missile development and says it has never sought to develop nuclear weapons.
According to state media reports, another mission of Chamran-1 is to “evaluate the performance of cold gas propulsion subsystems and navigation and attitude control subsystems in space systems.”
Iran has one of the largest missile programmes in the Middle East and has failed to launch satellites several times in recent years because of technical problems.
