Iran Launches Satellite Amid Western Concerns Over Missile Development

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Iran successfully launched a satellite into space on Saturday using a rocket built by the country's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, according to state-run media. This marks the latest development in a program that Western nations fear could advance Tehran's ballistic missile capabilities. The launch was reported as successful by Iranian authorities, making it the second time the satellite has been put into orbit with the same type of rocket, though independent confirmation is yet to be provided.

 

Footage aired by Iranian media showed the rocket launching from a mobile platform. Analysis of the video suggested that the launch occurred at the Guard's facility near Shahroud, a city roughly 215 miles east of Tehran. This event comes amid growing tensions in the Middle East, particularly with the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, during which Iran launched an unprecedented missile-and-drone attack on Israel. At the same time, Iran continues to enrich uranium close to weapons-grade levels, raising alarm among nonproliferation experts about its nuclear ambitions.

 

The satellite was carried into space by the Qaem-100 rocket, the same model that was successfully used in January. The rocket, a solid-fuel, three-stage device, delivered the Chamran-1 satellite, weighing 60 kilograms (132 pounds), into a 550-kilometer (340-mile) orbit. The rocket bore a Quranic verse, symbolizing the spiritual and political dimensions of Iran’s space endeavors.

 

General Hossein Salami, head of the Revolutionary Guard, praised the scientists involved in the launch, lauding their ability to overcome the "extensive and oppressive international sanctions" imposed on Iran. The satellite itself was developed by experts at Iran’s Aerospace Research Institute, in collaboration with a subsidiary of the Defense Ministry. While Iranian media did not go into detail, it was noted that the satellite is intended to test hardware and software systems for orbital maneuver technology.

 

The U.S. State Department and military did not respond immediately to the launch. However, the U.S. has long been critical of Iran's satellite program, asserting that it defies a U.N. Security Council resolution. The U.S. has also voiced concerns that such launches could help Iran develop ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, particularly since the expiration of U.N. sanctions related to Iran's missile program in October. The U.S. intelligence community’s 2023 threat assessment warned that satellite launch technology could accelerate Iran's ability to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles.

 

Iran has consistently denied that its space program or nuclear activities have military aims, asserting that these endeavors are purely for civilian purposes. However, U.S. intelligence and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) maintain that Iran had an organized military nuclear program until 2003. The IAEA has repeatedly warned that Iran now possesses enough enriched uranium for several nuclear weapons, should it decide to move in that direction.

 

This launch also coincided with the upcoming second anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death, a 22-year-old woman whose passing sparked nationwide protests against Iran’s mandatory hijab laws and the broader authority of the country's Shiite theocracy. As tensions simmer both domestically and internationally, Iran's satellite launch underscores the growing complexity of its geopolitical standing.

 

 

Credit: NPR 2024-09-16