In a significant achievement, Iran successfully launched three domestically designed satellites into space on Sunday, marking the first time the country has sent multiple payloads into orbit simultaneously, according to the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA).
Domestic Innovation Takes Flight:
The satellites, named Mehda, Keyhan-2, and Hatef-1, were launched aboard the Simorgh carrier rocket, also developed domestically. They reached an elliptical orbit with a minimum altitude of 450 kilometers above Earth.
Mehda, the largest of the three, serves as a communication and research satellite tasked with evaluating the performance of the Simorgh rocket across various functions. Meanwhile, the two nanosatellites, Keyhan-2 and Hatef-1, will focus on enhancing global positioning and communications technologies, respectively.
This achievement builds upon Iran’s successful launch of the Soraya satellite on January 20th, demonstrating continued progress in its space program. Soraya, a 47-kilogram research and telecommunications satellite, was launched using the indigenously developed Qaem-100 carrier rocket. This s reported by China Daily, a partner of TV BRICS.
Iran’s growing space capabilities have drawn international attention, coinciding with its recent admission to the BRICS group on January 1st, 2024. With Russia chairing the group this year, opportunities for collaboration and knowledge sharing could potentially arise.
