Iran successfully puts third imaging satellite into orbit

Addis Ababa, September 27, 2023 (FBC) – Iran has successfully launched the imaging satellite Noor-3 into orbit 450 kilometers (280 miles) above the Earth’s surface, officials said on Wednesday.

Minister for Communication and Information Technology Issa Zarepour said in a social media post that the satellite has been successfully launched into orbit.

He said the aerospace division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has carried out the launch of the satellite using a domestically produced Qassed launch vehicle.

“I congratulate this success to the people, those who are working hard in the country’s aerospace sector and experts at the IRGC Aerospace Force,” the minister said in a Persian post.

Qassed was also used by the IRGC to launch the previous version of the satellite Noor-2 in March 2022, placing it into orbit 500 kilometers (311 miles) from the Earth’s surface. Noor-1 was launched in 2020.

In November last year, the IRGC tested the satellite carrier Ghaem 100 into the first suborbital stage. It came four months after Iran’s Defense Ministry announced the second launch of its indigenously developed satellite carrier named Zuljanah, which was hailed as a “breakthrough.” AA