Iran launches first domestically-designed space tug

The Saman-1, along with a CubeSat and a research payload, was successfully sent into space from the Imam Khomeini Space Launch Terminal, southeast of Semnan, on Friday morning using a Simorgh launcher, PressTV reported.

The payloads were placed in an orbit around the Earth, with an apogee of 410 kilometers and a perigee of 300 kilometers.

Simorgh is a two-stage SLV with liquid fuel developed by the Iranian Ministry of Defense.

In its eighth launch, the Simorgh set a new record for the liftoff of payloads. During this multi-phase mission, it successfully placed the Saman-1 orbital transfer block and two other research payloads, weighing nearly 300 kilograms, into orbit.

Designed and developed by technicians from the Iranian Space Research Center (ISRC), the Saman-1 system is designed to place satellites in higher orbits, reducing costs and eliminating the need for large launch vehicles with high fuel consumption.

The space tug was test-launched in October 2022. Reflecting on the system, Hassan Salaryieh, chief of Iran’s space agency said that the system “means a quicker and smoother process of obtaining the orbital point synchronized with the Earth once a satellite elevates its orbital height from the geostationary orbit to the operational one.”

One of the payloads of today’s launcher was, according to Iranian media, the Fakhr-1 communication satellite. This satellite, developed by experts from the Ministry of Defense’s Iran Electronics Industries, was placed into a 410-kilometer orbit.

Moments ago, the satellite sent its first signal to ground stations.

Despite sanctions imposed by Western countries in recent years, Iran has taken giant strides in the civilian space program.

The country is among the world’s top 10 nations capable of developing and launching satellites.

On September 14, Iran successfully sent into orbit the domestically-developed Chamran 1 research satellite, registering another impressive stride in the country’s space program.