SORAYA
SATELLITE - SCI & TECH
News:
Iran launches ‘Sorayya’
satellite into 750 km orbit, its highest yet
What's
in the news?
●
Iran had conducted a successful satellite
launch into its highest orbit.
Key
takeaways:
●
The launch was part of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ space
programme alongside Iran’s civilian space programme.
●
The U.S. intelligence community’s 2023
worldwide threat assessment said the development of satellite launch vehicles
“shortens the timeline” for Iran to develop an intercontinental ballistic
missile because it uses similar technology.
●
Iran is now producing uranium close to
weapons-grade levels after the collapse of its nuclear deal with world powers.
●
Iran has enough enriched uranium for
“several” nuclear weapons, if it chooses to produce them.
●
Iran has sent several short-lived
satellites into orbit and in 2013 launched a monkey into space.
Soraya
Satellite:
●
The Soraya satellite was placed in an
orbit at some 750KM (460 miles) above
the Earth’s surface with its three-stage Ghaem-100 rocket.
●
The satellite is built by the elite
military revolutionary guards.
●
The Soraya satellite was shot into orbit
atop the Ghaem-100 rocket of Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps (IRGC).
Ghaem
100:
●
It is Iran’s
first three-stage launch vehicle, will be able to place satellites weighing
80 kg in an orbit of 500km from the earth’s surface.
●
The flight test of this satellite carrier
with a solid-fuelled engine was successfully completed.
●
The rocket would be used to launch Iran’s
Nahid satellite for the telecommunications ministry, as per the report.