Tehran announced Saturday that it launched its second satellite this year, called “Jomaran 1, successfully into orbit-a new step forward for a space program now causing increasing alarm among Western governments.
The “Jomaran 1” weighs about 60 kilograms and has the main aim of testing the systems and software destined for orbital maneuvering. The Space Electronics Industries Group, Sairan, developed and manufactured the satellite with the help of the Aerospace Research Institute. The launch vehicle, “Qaem 100,” was manufactured by the aerospace division of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
Iran insists that its space activities are for civilian and military purposes and are within the framework of international agreements, including the 2015 nuclear deal with the P5+1, from which the U.S. withdrew in 2018.
Over the past couple of years, Iran has sent several research and military satellites into orbit. Later this month, Iran declared the successful launch of a remote sensing and imaging satellite named “Pars 1” from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia, east of Moscow.
It was in August 2022 that Russia launched the Iranian “Khayyam” satellite for remote sensing from its territory in Kazakhstan amidst discussions about its possible use by Moscow to help Moscow’s surveillance capabilities in its conflict with Ukraine.
That month, Iran reached a milestone when it launched three satellites into orbit at once, further developing its space activities despite ongoing Western sanctions.
