Iran on Tuesday conducted at least one of two planned satellite launches despite warnings from the United States, however the satellite failed to reach the “necessary speed” in its third stage and did not enter orbit, according to an official.
The rocket carrying the Payam satellite failed to reach the “necessary speed” in the third stage of its launch, Telecommunications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi said.
Jahromi said the rocket had successfully passed its first and second stages before developing problems in the third. He didn’t elaborate on what caused the rocket failure but promised that Iranian scientists would continue their work. –CBS News
The launch took place at Imam Khomeini Space Center in the province of Semnan, and was overseen by the country’s Defense Ministry according to Jahromi. Images published last week by CNN show activity at the launch site.
Tuesday’s launch follows warnings by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said that the launches would violate a 2015 United Nations Security Resolution by incorporating ballistic missile technology, passed in order to endorse the Iran nuclear deal which Trump withdrew from last May.
“The United States will not stand by and watch the Iranian regime’s destructive policies place international stability and security at risk,” said Pompeo in a Jan. 3 statement. “We advise the regime to reconsider these provocative launches and cease all activities related to ballistic missiles in order to avoid deeper economic and diplomatic isolation.”
That said, the Security Council resolution says Iran “is called upon” not to conduct any activity related to ballistic missiles, but does not ban the activity.
Next up is the Doosti satellite, which may or may not be delayed according to Jahromi, who just tweeted that: “Doosti is waiting for orbit,” adding “We should not come up short or stop. It’s exactly in these circumstances that we Iranians are different than other people in spirit and bravery.”
The Payam satellite was meant for use in communications and imaging and had four cameras, Reuters reports.
Iranian state television had aired footage of its reporter narrating the launch of the Simorgh rocket, shouting over its roar that it sent “a message of the pride, self-confidence and willpower of Iranian youth to the world!”
The TV footage shows the rocket becoming just a pinpoint of light in the darkened sky, but not the moment of its failure. Jahromi’s comments that the problem developed in the launch’s third stage suggest something went wrong after the rocket pushed the satellite out of the Earth’s atmosphere. –CBS News
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed Iran over the launch, accusing Tehran of lying about the “innocent satellite” which was actually “the first stage of an intercontinental missile.”
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