(IRGC) successfully launch a Military Satellite, the Noor 2, into orbit.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)  successfully launch a military satellite, the Noor 2, into orbit.

What is the news:

• Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has successfully put a second military satellite, the Noor 2, into orbit.
• The announcement came as talks held in Vienna to revive an agreement restraining Iran’s nuclear program have reached a critical stage.

About the launch :

• Noor 2 is orbiting at an altitude of 500 kilometers (311 miles).
• The first military satellite, launched by the Islamic Republic in April 2020, placed the Noor, or “light” in Persian, at an orbit of 425km (265 miles) above the earth’s surface.
• The three-stage Qased, or “Messenger”, carrier launched the Noor 2, from the Shahroud space port, it added. The same type of rockets, which use a combination of liquid and solid fuels, carried the first military satellite.

Big advance for iran :

• Putting a second satellite in space would be a major advance for Iran’s military, raising concerns about the country’s nuclear and missile programs.
• Iran is planning to launch a series of Noor satellites in the coming years.
• The space program of the country to stabilize various scientific, research and defence satellites in low-earth orbit and then reach orbit of 36,000 kilometers above land.
• The U.S. military says the same long-range ballistic technology used to put satellites into orbit could also allow Tehran to launch longer-range weapons, possibly including nuclear warheads.
• Tehran denies U.S. assertions that such activity is a cover for ballistic missile development and says it has never pursued the development of nuclear weapons.

Failure in previous attempts:

• In December, Iran’s space launch failed to put its three payloads into orbit after the rocket was unable to reach the required speed.
• The attempted launch drew criticism from the United States, Germany and France.
• Iran, which has one of the biggest missile programs in the Middle East, has suffered several failed satellite launches in recent years due to technical issues.
• The United States imposed sanctions on Iran’s civilian space agency and two research organisations in 2019, saying they were being used to advance Tehran’s ballistic missile program.
• Tehran denies that its space activity is a cover for ballistic missile development.