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Senior MP Underscores IRGC Aerospace Force’s Plans to Orbit Satellites in 36,000-km Altitude


TEHRAN (FNA)- The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force is seriously pursuing plans to send satellites into the 36,000-km orbit in the future, a senior legislator said.
“The IRGC Aerospace Force is making extensive efforts to reach the 36,000-km altitude,” Rouhollah Motefakker Azad told FNA after IRGC Aerospace Force’s Commander Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh held a meeting with him and several other lawmakers on Tuesday.

He added that the IRGC Aerospace Force has prepared precise plans to attain this goal, specially given the emphasis of Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, and noted, “Certainly, we will witness their further success in the near future.”


Motefakker Azad said that during the meeting with General Hajizadeh, the Iranian MPs could witness tracking of Noor satellite and its signals closely.

The IRGC launched the Satellite Noor-1 by the domestically-built launcher Qassed (herald) on April 22 and placed it into the orbit at an altitude of 425km.

The Launcher Qassed is a three-stage launcher using compound soild-liquid fuel.

The satellite was sent to the space on the anniversary of the IRGC establishment (April 22, 1979).

IRGC Spokesman Brigadier General Ramezan Sharif said the IRGC’s satellite launch once again proved that the US sanctions have failed to hinder the country’s scientific progress.

“Following the launch, the Americans and Europeans admitted that the embargos have failed to interrupt the Islamic Republic’s scientific advancement,” Brigadier General Ramezan Sharif said late in April.

“When the country is capable of taking such measures under sanctions, it is also able to meet its people’s needs despite the economic terrorism imposed on them,” he added.

Ramezan Sharif thanked the Iranian scientists, officials, political figures, and the noble nation for their positive reactions to the satellite launch, stressing that the IRGC will continue its efforts on the course of developing and empowering Iran.

Earlier this month, Commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force’s Space Department Brigadier General Ali Jafarabadi said that Iran has long-term plans to send satellites into the 36,000-km orbit.

Iran has plans to “increase the orbital altitude (of its satellites) and reach the 36,000-km altitude in the next few years”, General Jafarabadi said.

He added that the altitude which is of strategic importance is special to telecommunication and TV satellites.

https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990230001035
 
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Senior MP Underscores IRGC Aerospace Force’s Plans to Orbit Satellites in 36,000-km Altitude


TEHRAN (FNA)- The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force is seriously pursuing plans to send satellites into the 36,000-km orbit in the future, a senior legislator said.
“The IRGC Aerospace Force is making extensive efforts to reach the 36,000-km altitude,” Rouhollah Motefakker Azad told FNA after IRGC Aerospace Force’s Commander Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh held a meeting with him and several other lawmakers on Tuesday.

He added that the IRGC Aerospace Force has prepared precise plans to attain this goal, specially given the emphasis of Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, and noted, “Certainly, we will witness their further success in the near future.”


Motefakker Azad said that during the meeting with General Hajizadeh, the Iranian MPs could witness tracking of Noor satellite and its signals closely.

The IRGC launched the Satellite Noor-1 by the domestically-built launcher Qassed (herald) on April 22 and placed it into the orbit at an altitude of 425km.

The Launcher Qassed is a three-stage launcher using compound soild-liquid fuel.

The satellite was sent to the space on the anniversary of the IRGC establishment (April 22, 1979).

IRGC Spokesman Brigadier General Ramezan Sharif said the IRGC’s satellite launch once again proved that the US sanctions have failed to hinder the country’s scientific progress.

“Following the launch, the Americans and Europeans admitted that the embargos have failed to interrupt the Islamic Republic’s scientific advancement,” Brigadier General Ramezan Sharif said late in April.

“When the country is capable of taking such measures under sanctions, it is also able to meet its people’s needs despite the economic terrorism imposed on them,” he added.

Ramezan Sharif thanked the Iranian scientists, officials, political figures, and the noble nation for their positive reactions to the satellite launch, stressing that the IRGC will continue its efforts on the course of developing and empowering Iran.

Earlier this month, Commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force’s Space Department Brigadier General Ali Jafarabadi said that Iran has long-term plans to send satellites into the 36,000-km orbit.

Iran has plans to “increase the orbital altitude (of its satellites) and reach the 36,000-km altitude in the next few years”, General Jafarabadi said.

He added that the altitude which is of strategic importance is special to telecommunication and TV satellites.

https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990230001035

Assuming some (natural) delays we probably won’t see a geo-Sat launch till 2025 if progress continues at this rate.
 
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Not claiming the first prize of the NOOR-1 tracking contest yet.

But very close. Maybe tonight!

Meanwhile, I testify that the Iranian IRGC's military satellite NOOR-1 was seen on 20th May 2020, cruising around Praesepe, (Latin word meaning manger or cradle) also known as Messier 44 (M44) or the Beehive Cluster, a large, bright open star cluster located in the constellation Cancer, along the North Korean Kwangmyongsong-4 earth observation satellite, both on patrol duty, enforcing peace and stability in the international LEO, and deterring any hostile move or trouble-making against the Axis of Resistance.


b28b4d93560ee979f0101a0cb2ae1acc01591011.jpg

http://archive.is/tZIwz/b28b4d93560ee979f0101a0cb2ae1acc01591011.jpg ; https://archive.is/tZIwz/6b0189acf99c003ee3b681c833c2872d4e06ff77/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200520171858if_/https://i.imgur.com/jIRT6IG.jpg
1. Iranian NOOR-1 satellite seen on 20th May 2020 along North Korea's Kwangmyongsong-4 earth observation satellite. Screen capture from Stellarium.



6e323515d66ee30841cae4a9a7318d3b72b3e685.gif

ae4ffdaeb02c2ea160fb33e41686a846f36755ca.gif

022c2d783cdf337beef335add6afdbf99880963d.png
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Why do we still care about the satellite? It's just an off the shelf commercial cubesat. The real news was the solid-fuel second and third stage.
 
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Why do we still care about the satellite? It's just an off the shelf commercial cubesat. The real news was the solid-fuel second and third stage.

We care about NOOR satellite because of all these reasons:

• Firstly, it is the first ever satellite launched by Iran's IRGC.

• Secondly, it is Iran's first military satellite.

• Thirdly, this success ends a long series of failed launches for Iran, with Fajr#3 launched on 2nd February 2015, being the last before six consecutive failures (19.04.2016, 27.07.2017, 15.01.2019, 5 February 2019, 29 August 2019, 09.02.2020).

• Fourthly, NOOR is achieving for the first time what Fajr#3 could previously not: manoeuvering in orbit with its own cold gas thruster system!

• Fifthly, as a consequence of the above 4th, the orbital life will be tremendous: instead of a couple of months like Fajr#3, generations to come will be able to watch NOOR, even when all the members of Pakistan Defence Forum have left this world, our grandchildren will still track this one satellite. In this regard, NOOR has joined China's first satellite DFH-1 and North Korea's Kwangmyongsong-3!

• Sixthly, with this outstanding achievement, this satellite might mark the beginning of the IRGC's space agency taking over the civilian space agency in all Iran's future space activities

• Seventhly, the satellite launcher carried to heaven the image of our beloved Martyr Major-General Qasem Soleimani, the Commander of the IRGC’s Quds Forces who formerly accomplished numerous other valorous achievements during his blessed life, as well as having a life that was characterized by extraordinary faith, exemplary courage and passionate attachment to Wilayat.

• Eighthly, NOOR is not only a tribute to Martyr Major-General Qasem Soleimani, it is also a testimony to Martyr Tehrani Moghadam who took great steps in the promotion of the IRGC military strength, the solid space launchers being his brainchilds.

• For all these reasons, the tracking of NOOR satellite should be made popular among the Iranian masses if not mandatory, only for the sake of scientific advancement. China did it with the DFH-1 satellite back in 1970 sparing no effort in bringing the people closer to the dark night skies, and today 50 years later, the PRC is launching in a row, both a lunar capable seven seater crewed spacecraft, a lunar return sample probe, a Mars rover and a space station core module! While DFH-1 (Dong Fang Hong - Red is East) still orbits the Earth!


As promised, here the first image, but honestly not certain at all that it is from the NOOR satellite.

As always in satobs, the major problem is the identification of the many traces. Just like in particle physics. Indeed, archives in my hard drives are full of these unidentified objects...

Tonight, the timing according to Stellarium, did not really match the traces on the photo. And the nearest one that crossed Algieba and Adhafera (two stars of the LEO constellation) within under 5 minutes of the predicted time was not exactly following the plotted path...

Nonetheless, here the picture, calibrated online via astrometry.net.

The path is at the center of the image, showing seemingly some sign of rotation, the magnitude is dimmer than 7:

0db8005d7d8c49fcc72ff3fe19dc4f0535ef5641.jpg

http://archive.is/NDoQX/0db8005d7d8c49fcc72ff3fe19dc4f0535ef5641.jpg ; https://archive.is/NDoQX/001fead7e6b1ea2a4034742c11febba91db65ba5/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200521014256/http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4240760 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4240760 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/status/3533606 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/3675462#annotated
1. Possible pass imaged of the Noor satellite.

Note that nothing was seen with binoculars, probably due to the level of light pollution (clear sky conditions).

In the following days, conditions will not improve. As the temperature is getting ever more scorching, thus the haze. Moreover the end of the COVID-19 lockdown means more human activities, more atmospheric dust and increased light pollution, making space imaging even more difficult.

https://twitter.com/StarTrekFleet/status/1167469904380841985

6e323515d66ee30841cae4a9a7318d3b72b3e685.gif

ae4ffdaeb02c2ea160fb33e41686a846f36755ca.gif

022c2d783cdf337beef335add6afdbf99880963d.png
4b7f704c1b6a7a2291742bd3986353bc70cc2569.png
 
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Good news bro, the contest for the first image of the Iranian NOOR satellite is still ON! With its prize!

Bad news, after careful further analysis, what was already stated is now confirmed, the trace in my previous picture was not that of the NOOR satellite.

But near certainly that of the most pesky Israeli BGUSAT (NORAD ID: 41999; Int'l Code: 2017-008BD), and that was orbiting at nearly the same altitude (484.5 km/496.9 km) and also same period (94.3 minutes).

Two Line Element Set (TLE):

1 41999U 17008BD 20145.10292110 .00001804 00000-0 69907-4 0 9994
2 41999 97.3666 213.9467 0009067 46.8576 313.3419 15.27415633181237

The root cause for all these confusions is at the source, the U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command. And this is nothing new.

As seen from the prediction map, in reality the BGUSAT was captured on camera 5 minutes early!

c5a45c99b188670a9a635e5a17dadf9946b62106.jpg

http://archive.is/o47bu/c5a45c99b188670a9a635e5a17dadf9946b62106.jpg ; https://archive.is/o47bu/25b8fc66e813661d1b8684b5e45172d5b9df08d1/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200525000231/https://i.imgur.com/luPokuC.jpg
1. Predicted pass of BGUSAT.


0db8005d7d8c49fcc72ff3fe19dc4f0535ef5641.jpg

http://archive.is/NDoQX/0db8005d7d8c49fcc72ff3fe19dc4f0535ef5641.jpg ; https://archive.is/NDoQX/001fead7e6b1ea2a4034742c11febba91db65ba5/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200521014256/http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4240760 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4240760 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/status/3533606 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/3675462#annotated
2. Unindentified pass imaged as the BGUSAT satellite.



What is noteworthy is that this satellite launched from India in February 2017 is even smaller than Iran's NOOR, with only 10X30 centimeters, the size of a milk carton, and weighs only 5 kilograms.

Therefore why was the Iranian 6U Cubesat of twice the size of the Israeli 3U CubeSat not caught on camera?

Here another example taken from tonight COVID-19 session. The North Korean satellite Kwangmyongsong-4 was captured within under a minute of the predicted time and slightly off the predicted path.

6413a2b7937ab1ff9be40e26f82bb4d7f0c5e2af.jpg

http://archive.vn/bXIUs/6413a2b7937ab1ff9be40e26f82bb4d7f0c5e2af.jpg ; https://archive.vn/bXIUs/aa699960adb2a38000a0f59b88a2d025bd991e90/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200525000304/https://i.imgur.com/t1Nf1IG.jpg
3. Predicted pass of Kwangmyongson-4.

And the calibrated picture via astrometry.net:

scr.png

http://archive.vn/7ulNk/f1d04813c211517428b3c836dc65d3f6991da248.jpg ; https://archive.vn/7ulNk/725b9ef46bb8f9bddcc9604c7d94e892f587635e/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200525000400/https://i.imgur.com/Rlyt3f0.jpg ; http://nova.astrometry.net/status/3547050 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/3688832#annotated ; http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4254321
4. Actual captured pass of Kwangmyongson-4.

Moreover, it seems that official U.S. data concerning Iran's military satellite are weird to say the least: NOOR is alleged to be orbiting at a lower altitude than the final rocket stage!

QASED R/B: Perigee: 435.7 km, Apogee: 448.9 km
NOUR 01: Perigee: 432.9 km, Apogee: 442.4 km

QASED R/B Two Line Element Set (TLE):

1 45530U 20024B 20145.20452175 +.00001262 +00000-0 +35530-4 0 9994
2 45530 059.7978 044.2327 0009658 269.4589 090.5384 15.43704540004946

NOUR 01 Two Line Element Set (TLE):
1 45529U 20024A 20145.50746300 .00004233 00000-0 95456-4 0 9995
2 45529 59.8135 42.7827 0006982 313.4531 103.6694 15.45284725 4997

Which doesn't make any sense at all! Not at all!

I will continue with the NOOR tracking contest, but next time starting 5 minutes earlier and going 5 minutes after the predicted time.

Knowing that with the Chinese Yaogan Triplets or U.S. NOSS SIGINT satellites, the 'error' might reach 20 minutes!


By then, here the other crescent visible from Earth: the Venus crescent right, with Mercury in the upper left corner.

scr.png

http://archive.vn/MTJCR/5831313593e247630de2bf406bc00135e5739e31.jpg ; https://archive.vn/MTJCR/ab64d1194061a4d4a6ed209da47e2751adade9de/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200525010307/https://i.imgur.com/tMdXwxN.jpg
5. Venus crescent in conjunction with Mercury.

6e323515d66ee30841cae4a9a7318d3b72b3e685.gif

ae4ffdaeb02c2ea160fb33e41686a846f36755ca.gif

022c2d783cdf337beef335add6afdbf99880963d.png
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What is the equivalent of Salman engine in NK SLVs?


I will concur, nothing that small in North Korea. For under 1 meters diameters stages, only graphite jet vanes are used for the steering.

Meanwhile, the TVC solid propellant stage is 2 meters in diameter, and should soon be disclosed. (By November or December 2020)


Expect the completion of the program before the end of this year!

b76831e9fd181933c7789b5259529490e0d634f6.jpg

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1. Satellite imagery taken on 5th April 2020 showing that North Korea has conducted the first solid-propellant [Pukguksong-4] intercontinental ballistic missile cold-launch test.

de6c202537bb0a3f5ad332bc6efc4b98bed145fc.jpg

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2. Most auspicious year of 2020 with the new North-Korean Topol-class ICBM to be test-launched within months!



6e323515d66ee30841cae4a9a7318d3b72b3e685.gif

ae4ffdaeb02c2ea160fb33e41686a846f36755ca.gif

022c2d783cdf337beef335add6afdbf99880963d.png
4b7f704c1b6a7a2291742bd3986353bc70cc2569.png
 
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What is the equivalent of Salman engine in NK SLVs?
That is what I thought. None.

خیلی جالبه برام ما در این مساله اینقدر جلوتریم.

While Iran has currently only one Salman rocket stage orbiting the earth, but with no published pictures on the internet to this day, North Korea has two since 2012 and 2016.

And one of them even imaged as late as last night!

The Kwangmyongsong space rocket's 3rd stage, photographed here from close range in its horizontal assembly and processing building of Sohae Space Center, with a much larger diameter of 1.25 m (Salman R/B ~0.9 m), that is similar to the Safir-1 space launcher, and launched on 7th February 2016 with the 200 kg heavy payload Kwangmyongsong-4 earth observation satellite into a Sun Synchronous Orbit:

f7025caf473d8bc21f3546b361aea6474f75cb16.jpg

http://archive.is/4HeF6/f7025caf473d8bc21f3546b361aea6474f75cb16.jpg ; https://archive.is/4HeF6/e337bcf9401f4f29249758187fae811774f56d7e/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200603...data/jajuilbo_com/201602/2016021558459351.jpg ; http://archive.vn/rDMVm ; http://www.jajusibo.com/sub_read.html?uid=25927
1. Kwangmyongsong space rocket's 3rd stage, launched on 7th February 2016.

KMS-4 KMS R/B Two Line Element Set (TLE):

1 41333U 16009B 20144.71110578 +.00001719 +00000-0 +45438-4 0 9997
2 41333 097.3593 230.7410 0041708 115.1495 245.4086 15.38994226240694

The predicted pass, as emerging from the earth shadow:

170b6093ef49259b19a942e9a701addb00d950f4.jpg

http://archive.vn/sbH7S/170b6093ef49259b19a942e9a701addb00d950f4.jpg ; https://archive.vn/sbH7S/e1fe2f4a1ddf17b67a7800a007b1ffb658da28d4/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200603210940/https://i.imgur.com/iPyf0AW.jpg
2. Kwangmyongsong space rocket's 3rd stage predicted pass.

But as previoulsy feared last week, photographed under very difficult environmental conditions caused by a Moon illuminated at 88.8%, a hot and hazy sky, producing the most annoying intense bright white sky background (removed before upload), and resulting in a very poorly contrasted faint trace of the rocket stage's pass of an estimated magnitude dimmer than 8, but revealing nonetheless a clear brightess variation (rotation) with a peak-to-peak of about ~7 seconds.

As imaged from a 450 kilometer range last night (calibrated with astrometry.net):

9184666a0755156ebe10c708ddf9f4c700b2c10e.jpg

http://archive.vn/ikMGy/9184666a0755156ebe10c708ddf9f4c700b2c10e.jpg ; https://archive.vn/ikMGy/87cb7fee6a03f86f984fc43ddd2d085778391aa6/scr.png ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200603211028/http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4287095 ; http://nova.astrometry.net/annotated_full/4287095 ; http://web.archive.org/web/20200603211224/http://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/3721577#annotated ; http://archive.vn/iLZyx
3. Kwangmyongsong space rocket's 3rd stage, as imaged from a 450 kilometer range last night.

6e323515d66ee30841cae4a9a7318d3b72b3e685.gif

ae4ffdaeb02c2ea160fb33e41686a846f36755ca.gif

022c2d783cdf337beef335add6afdbf99880963d.png
4b7f704c1b6a7a2291742bd3986353bc70cc2569.png


TAGS:
BGUSAT, Kwangmyongsong-4, GOSAT-2, Yaogan 25A/25B/25C, FIA-Radar 5, KWANGMYONGSONG R/B
 
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ماهواره نور یک ماهواره کوچک است، حجم آن تنها به چند لیتر می‌رسد و تخمین زده شده که وزن آن بین ۵ تا ۱۴ کیلوگرم است. ماهواره‌ای بسیار کوچک برای اهداف جاسوسی در آسمان.

ماهواره نور به کمک ماهواره‌بر قاصد در مدار قرار گرفت، مرحله سوم این ماهواره‌بر، یک راکت با سوخت جامد است. آرش-۲۴ احتمالا بیش از

۱۰۰ کیلوگرم و سلمان نیز احتمالا بیش از ۳۰۰ کیلوگرم وزن دارد.

با احتساب ماهواره نور-۱ و مرحله سوم، می‌بینیم که سپاه پاسداران توانایی به مدار فرستادن وزن خالصی در حدود ۱۰۵-۳۳۴ کیلوگرم بر فراز ایالات متحده را دارد.

به نظر می‌رسد سپاه پاسداران عامدانه تلاش می‌کند تا توانایی تسلیحاتی فضایی‌اش را با جداسازی نور-۱ از مرحله سوم، کمتر از حد نشان دهد. به این امید که اهمیت ماهواره کوچکی مانند نور-۱ نادیده گرفته شود. یعنی همان اشتباهی که فرماندهی فضایی مرتکب شد.

What do you guys think about this thought? I am puzzled about the third stage of Nour. Is the third stage still orbiting?
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Here is a website where u can track Nour. I couldn't find the Nour satellite at first until I typed in the name NOUR, with a U after the O and pressed the track button. I'm not very scientifically inclined however if you look at the right side of the screen underneath the column that says Nour 01, various numbers/variables keep changing, including Latitude, Longitude, etc. Does this mean anything ? Does this verify anything ?

https://www.n2yo.com/?s=45529&live=1

This article implies that Iran by passed US sanctions and acquired the Noor satellite from the Mexicans who in turn got it from the USA. He says that Noor is barely visible because of how small it is and that it is not a 6U cubesat, which is imaged on the rockets decal.

https://skyriddles.wordpress.com/2020/04/28/recovering-irans-nour-01-military-satellite/

This is from June 3rd



What do you guys think about this thought? I am puzzled about the third stage of Nour. Is the third stage still orbiting?
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