Speaking to Tasnim news agency about the status of indigenous launchers and planned native launches, Hassan Salariyeh, Head of the Iran Space Agency, stated that this year has seen launches by the "Qased," "Simorgh," and "Zuljanah" satellite carriers, with most of these launches aimed at "technology development."
Turning to launcher development, Salarieh said several parallel tracks are underway in advancing solid-fuel satellite carriers.
He stated that after development of the “Qaem 100,” the “Qaem 105” project from the same family is now being pursued in cooperation with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Aerospace Force.
He also said development of the “Qaem 120” launcher is planned, noting it can carry heavier payloads to low Earth orbit compared with the earlier Qaem 100 version and has the potential to reach a 36,000-kilometre orbit in an elongated elliptical trajectory, or GTO.
According to Salarieh, multiple related projects have been defined, with suborbital and test launches expected soon.
Regarding existing launchers, he said the first test last year of an upgraded “Simorgh” launcher, aimed at delivering payloads toward a 36,000-kilometre orbit through elliptical injection, was successful and additional launches are planned to stabilize its performance.
He added that development of the “Phoenix” satellite launcher is another key effort, stating it is designed to carry heavier payloads in low Earth orbit.
On broader orbital ambitions, Salarieh said Iran’s strategy for reaching geostationary orbit involves combining powerful launchers with “orbital transfer blocks.”
He explained that in this approach the launcher places the satellite and transfer block into parking orbit or low altitude, after which the transfer block moves the payload to higher orbit.