Iran announced on Wednesday that it had successfully launched a “life capsule” into space, a new step in the Islamic Republic’s ambitious aerospace program, despite concerns from Western countries about its goals.
“After a decade of pause, our country’s new life capsule was successfully launched to an altitude of 130 km using a locally manufactured launch vehicle,” said Telecommunications Minister Issa Zarepour, quoted by the official Irna agency.
This 500 kg capsule was carried by a new generation launch vehicle called Salman, which is being developed with the aim of sending astronauts into space.
Iran launched its first “life capsule” in 2010 with live animals on board – a rat, two turtles and an earthworm. He then sent a monkey into space in 2013, which came back alive.
Due to technical problems, Iran’s satellite launches failed several times.
But on September 27, the Revolutionary Guards, the Islamic Republic’s ideological army, announced that they had placed an imaging satellite, Nour-3, into orbit 450 km above the Earth.
Tehran maintains its aerospace activities are peaceful and in line with a UN Security Council resolution.
But Western governments fear their satellite launch systems will contain technologies interchangeable with those used in ballistic missiles capable of delivering a nuclear warhead, something Iran has always denied it wants to build.