Iran on Sunday successfully placed three domestically built satellites into orbit, an achievement which Minister of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Seyed Sattar Hashemi hailed as “a symbol of the progress” of the country and its space industry.
“The simultaneous launch of three satellites is a symbol of
the progress of our space industry,” he said at a ceremony broadcasting live the launch which was attended by senior officials and scientists.
Hashemi termed the space industry as the driver of
intelligent Earth management and fair development of communications, and
emphasized, “Sending a satellite into space is a symbol of Iranian hope,
knowledge, and courage”.
The satellites — Paya, Zafar-2 and Kowsar — were launched
aboard a Soyuz rocket from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia’s Far Eastern
Amur Oblast region.
The launch was conducted as part of the development program
of ICT Ministry’s Iranian Space Agency, aimed at strengthening remote-sensing
capabilities and expanding data-driven services.
Deployed into low Earth orbit at an altitude of about 500
kilometers, the mission is regarded as one of the country’s most significant
space events this year, enabling the simultaneous operation of multiple
indigenous satellites across service, infrastructure and management sectors.
“Three main areas are being pursued in this field", the
minister added, “Earth-observation satellites, communications satellites, and
navigation systems. Detailed planning and operational measures are underway
across all three areas.”
“The success of satellites such as Paya reflects a shift
away from fragmented approaches toward coordinated teamwork. The government,
regulatory bodies, knowledge-based companies, the private sector, and
supporting institutions have joined forces to advance these efforts.”
Paya, also known as Tolu-3, is a high-resolution
remote-sensing satellite designed and built in cooperation with Iranian
Electronics Industries. It is intended for applications including water
resource management, agriculture, environmental monitoring, mapping and natural
hazard assessment.
Zafar-2 represents a new generation of the Zafar satellite
series and was developed in partnership with Iran University of Science and
Technology. Its mission focuses on remote sensing and the collection of applied
data for natural resource monitoring and land management.
The upgraded Kowsar satellite has been developed to collect
operational data, monitor agricultural lands and support Internet of Things
(IoT)-related applications. It serves a complementary role within the country’s
data-driven satellite system.
In July, Iran successfully launched the indigenous Nahid-2
satellite which Hashemi praised describing it as a key step toward the
expansion of telecommunications services.
“The success of this mission will pave the way for the
design and production of similar satellites, enabling the establishment of
satellite constellations based on a common platform,” he said, noting that
Nahid-2 was Iran’s first telecommunications satellite operating in the K-band.