Iranian Space Agency logo.
Feb. 10, 2020
The launch of the Iranian satellite Zafar failed on Sunday due to insufficient speed. According to the country's authorities, the purpose of this space program was to collect images, in particular to prevent earthquakes.
Image above: An Iranian Simorgh (Phoenix) orbital carrier rocket is launched from the Imam Khomenei Spaceport in Semnan Province, Iran, on July 27, 2017. Image Credits: Tasnim News Agency via Wikimedia Commons.
Iran failed on Sunday to put a new scientific observation satellite into orbit as part of a space program that the country says is "peaceful", but which the United States has described as "provocation".
The launch of the Zafar satellite "failed," Iranian Telecommunications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi said on Twitter. Launched at 7:15 p.m. (4:45 p.m. in Switzerland), the satellite had reached "90% of its planned trajectory", at a height of 540 kilometers, said spokesman for the space department of the Ministry of Defense, Ahmad Hosseini, quoted by a state television channel.
Zafar satellite. Image Credit: The Iran Project
"The (launcher) Simorgh successfully propelled the Zafar satellite into space but the launcher did not reach the speed necessary to put the satellite into the desired orbit," he said, without indicating where to go. now found the satellite.
"Most of the objectives achieved"
"We have achieved most of the objectives we had and acquired data, and in the near future, by analyzing this data, we will proceed to the next steps", assured Ahmad Hosseini.
"We are INVULNERABLE! We have other great Iranian satellites to come! ”Said the Minister of Telecommunications.
Increased tensions
This launch comes against a backdrop of increased tensions between Tehran and Washington since the United States' unilateral withdrawal in May 2018 from an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program followed by the reinstatement of draconian American sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
Washington has also warned in the past against the Iranian space program, calling Tehran's firing of a rocket launching a satellite in January 2019 a violation of a UN resolution to limit the development of its ballistic capabilities.
"Iran has failed to launch a satellite today. They also fail to smuggle weapons into Syria and Lebanon because we operate there all the time, including these days, ”said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
New stage
On February 1, the head of the National Space Agency Mortéza Bérari had told AFP that the manufacturing of Zafar had "started three years ago with the participation of 80 Iranian scientists".
The satellite weighed 113 kilograms and was capable of circling the Earth 15 times a day, he added, adding that Zafar was designed to be operational "over 18 months".
His "main mission" should be to "collect images", he said, stressing Iran's needs in this area, in particular to study and prevent earthquakes, "prevent natural disasters" and develop its agriculture.
"This is a new step for our country," he said, recalling that Iran had already managed to place a satellite in orbit 250 km from Earth.
"Peaceful use of space"
While the Islamic Republic's satellite program worries Westerners, Mortéza Bérari said that Iran was campaigning for "the peaceful use of space". "All of our space activities are transparent."
On Sunday, the Revolutionary Guards, the regime's ideological army, unveiled a short-range ballistic missile that they believed could be powered by a "new generation" launcher designed to place satellites in orbit.
"The achievements (...) unveiled today are our key to entering space," said General Hossein Salami, chief of the Guardians, revealing a launcher equipped with a "mobile nozzle" allowing "maneuverability beyond the atmosphere. "
Provocation for Washington
In January 2019, Tehran announced the failure to put into orbit its Payam satellite ("Message"), which, according to the authorities, is intended to collect environmental data.
The launch had already been labeled by Washington as "provocation" and a violation of United Nations Security Council resolution 2231.
The resolution calls on Iran "not to carry out any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to carry nuclear charges, including fire using ballistic missile technology".
Claiming to have no plans to acquire atomic weapons, Tehran assures that its ballistic and space programs are lawful and do not violate the resolution.
Explosion
In September, Iran confirmed that an explosion had occurred on one of its satellite launch pads due to a technical problem, and castigated US President Donald Trump for "happily" tweeting about the incident.
The launch of Zafar comes two days before the 41st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, and about two weeks before crucial legislative elections.
It also comes after a spike in tension between Tehran and Washington linked to the January 3 death of powerful Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in an American drone strike in Baghdad.
Iran responded on January 8 with ballistic missile strikes at two bases housing American soldiers in Iraq. Dozens of them were victims of concussions.
Iran's internet services have suffered cyberattacks in the past two days, according to an official with the Ministry of Telecommunications, who did not specify the origin.
Iranian Space Agency: http://www.iafastro.org/societes/iranian-space-agency/
Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: ATS/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.
Greetings, Orbiter.ch