Iran Will Launch Second Satellite Soon - Defense Minister

Local Editor

Iran is planning to launch its second satellite to space on the occasion of the 40th victory anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami said.

Speaking to reporters after the Wednesday session of the Iranian cabinet, Hatami noted that one of the two satellites that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had mentioned in a recent speech was launched and the other one will be launched soon.

Iran is steadying improving its capacities and capabilities in the area of launching satellites, Hatami said, adding that the process of constructing, launching and supporting the satellites have been totally quite indigenized.

He went on to say that the satellite will be launched by Safir expendable launch vehicle, which is capable of putting satellites into 260-km orbit.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Hatami referred to the unsuccessful launching of Iranian satellite Payam, saying it was supposed to be put in 500 km orbit but it failed in the last step.

Earlier, Iranian Minister of Communications and Information Technology in a message announced that Iran's Payam satellite has not been put into orbit successfully.

Payam-e Amirkabir was a homegrown satellite designed and developed by Tehran’s Amirkabir University of Technology and was planned to carry out imagery mission in Low Earth Orbit [LEO].

Iran has previously sent Simorgh satellite and Pajouhesh explorer into the orbit in recent years.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team