IRGC launches 2nd military satellite to orbit
Iran's IRGC Aerospace Force launches its second domestically-produced satellite into orbit.
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) launched its second military satellite, Noor-II, on Tuesday morning, and reported that the satellite is now in orbit.
The domestically-produced satellite was launched with a "three-stage satellite carrier dubbed Qased" from a desert in Shahroud, northeast of Iran, according to Tasnim news agency,
The satellite, according to the outlet, was in orbit eight minutes after the launch, at an altitude of 500 km above the earth, and will be used for remote-sensing and reconnaissance operations.
The IRGC had launched its first military satellite, Noor-I, in April 2020.
Earlier in January, the IRGC's Aerospace Force tested out its first solid-fuel space rocket. "The structure of the new missile is made of composite and non-metallic materials, which reduces costs and increases the missile's performance," Aerospace Force Commander Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh said.
The General pointed out that only 4 countries in the world possess this technology, stressing that his country "has reached an advanced level in space technologies and the manufacture of satellite-carrying missiles," adding that "terrorism, threats, and sanctions can no longer influence it."