The Safir (Meaning Messenger or Ambassador in Arabic and adopted by Persian) is the name of the first Iranian expendable launch vehicle that is able to place a satellite in orbit. The first successful orbital launch using the Safir launch system took place February 2, 2009 when a Safir 2 carrier rocket placed the Omid satellite into an orbit with a 258.0 km (160.3 mi) apogee.

A sub-orbital test flight, named Kavoshgar-1, was conducted on February 4, 2008, as announced by state-run television. A launch on February 25, 2007, may also have been of the same type. The first flights carried instruments to measure the higher atmosphere. The rocket launched on February 4, 2008 was a liquid-propellant-driven rocket, probably a derivative of the Shahab-3, that reached an altitude of 200-250 km in space, and successfully returned science data according to the Iranian News Agency.

On February 19, 2008, Iran offered new information about the rocket and announced that Kavoshgar-1 used a two staged rocket. The first stage separated after 100 seconds and returned to earth with the help of a parachute. The second stage continued its ascent to the altitude of 200 kilometres. However it was not intended to reach orbital velocity.

Earlier reports by the Iranian News Agency suggested that Kavoshgar-1 used a three staged rocket with the first stage separating after 90 seconds and the rocket reaching an orbit between 200 and 250 kilometres.

The successful development and launch of a sounding-space-rocket was already announced a year earlier, on February 25, 2007. It is unknown if the sounding rocket launched on February 25, 2007, and the rocket launched on February 4, 2008, are of the same type.

Iran announced plans to send two more rockets into space during 2008 and four more satellites until 2010.

Safir-1
On 17 August 2008, Iranian officials reported that a Safir was launched successfully without a payload, in preparation for the launch of Iran's first indigenously launched satellite, Omid. Reza Taghizadeh, head of the Iranian Aerospace Organization, told state television "The Safir (Ambassador) satellite carrier was launched today and for the first time we successfully launched a dummy satellite into orbit". As it was announced by Iran, a dummy satellite was put into a 650 km LEO passing over Iran six times every 24 hours.

Alleged failure
According to an American official, "The vehicle failed shortly after liftoff and in no way reached its intended position." Video of the liftoff of the rocket was shown on Iranian state television. Iranian officials released a statement denouncing the allegations as propaganda and stated the Iran would soon launch the Omid satellite. Iran indeed launched Omid satellite on Feb. 2nd 2009, less than six months later.

Safir-2
On 2 February 2009, a Safir rocket conducted Iran's first orbital launch, with the Omid satellite. The two-staged launch vehicle named SAFIR-2 was 22m long with a diameter of 1.25m, weighing about 26 tonnes. The 27 kg Omid satellite was launched into an orbit with a 250 km perigee and 500 km apogee. The evidence is mounting that Safir-2 was more powerful and advanced than initially thought.


Safir-2 Block-II
Iran has begun the development of the planned Block-II Safir booster intended to double its payload capacity with the intent to make it operational by some time in 2010. The launch vehicle is to acquire its increased payload capacity into low earth orbit through the addition of two Samen, solid motor strap-on boosters added to the Shahab-3C derived first stage and possible a new solid motor third stage added to the existing two stage Safir space booster.

The announcement of the development start on this booster was made on April 14, 2009 by the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. This booster is capable of placing satellite in 700 kilometre (440 mile) orbits or doubling its payload capacity.Iran is known to be combining these liquid propellant and solid motor technologies to the development of a more capable Safir block-II class space booster expected in 2010 with over twice the capability of the present Safir space booster. It will utilising two Ghadr-101/Samen strap-on boosters with the first stage with a Safir second stage and potential third stage with in its bulbous payload shroud giving it a 50-200-250 kilogram payload capacity.

The Iranian successful development of the Ghadr-101 single stage missile with the Ghadr-101/Samen, Ghadr-110, 110A /Sejjil/Ashura solid propellant two and three stage missiles also indicated a second trend in Iranian developments that will lead to larger more capacity space boosters and potential ballistic missiles.Iran is known to be working on a new nearly all solid propellant boosters with a payload capacity of 330 kilograms to low earth orbit.

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Anita Rachman, JG, The country’s space agency successfully launched an unmanned rocket on Thursday, one small step in a plan to get a satellite into orbit by 2014, one of its executives said.

Toto Marnanto Kadri, the head of the Aerospace Electronics Technology Center at the Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Lapan), said the RX-420 rocket successfully blasted off into space on Thursday at around 8 a.m. from a launch pad in Pameungpeuk, several kilometers from the town of Garut, West Java.

“This is an experimental rocket. We launched it to measure our work and record information such as rocket trajectory data, height, launch position and so on,” Toto said. “This is part of our efforts to develop rocketry.”

He said data from the launch would be particularly valuable for the agency’s efforts to build its first satellite-deploying rocket, which is scheduled for liftoff in six years.

In a statement on the agency’s Web site, Lapan Chief Adi Sadewo Salatun said the launch had gone well. He stated that Lapan had managed to gather all of the key data from the launch’s first 10 seconds, information referred to as the “golden data.”

Toto said the rocket, with a diameter of 42 centimeters at its widest point, is the thickest rocket launched in the country so far. He said it fell to Earth after just a few minutes after blasting off, when its fuel ran out at a peak height of about 50 kilometers.

The 6.2-meter rocket carried a GPS device, an accelerometer and a temperature sensor.

He said that the launch was also a key advance for other components of the agency’s research program, such as a plan to send its first satellites into orbit in 2010. That project would carry remote-sensing surveillance and amateur radio communication equipment.

Lapan carried out a stationary test on RX-420 on Dec. 23 in Tarogong, West Java. Last year, the agency launched two smaller 32-cm diameter RX-320 rockets, also from the base in Pameungpeuk. The Lapan A-2 and Lapan-Orari satellites are to piggyback into orbit on an Indian rocket slated for launch in April. Lapan expects to finish those satellites by February.
source : http://thejakartaglobe.com/national/space-agency-launches-rx-420-rocket/315934

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The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch ten satellites including country's latest remote sensing satellite and eight nano satellites (Monday April 28). The satellites to be lifted off from Sriharikota will be carried by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle -PSLV-C9.

The cluster of satellites include the Indian Mini Satellite (IMPS-1) also. Latest remote sensing satellite CARTOSAT-2A, weighing about 690 kgs, carries a state-of-the-art panchromatic camera (PAN) which is capable of taking black-and-white pictures in visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

It would be used for mapping purposes and management of natural resources. The Indian Mini Satellite (IMS-1) developed by ISRO, weighing 83 kgs, also incorporates many technologies. It is an experimental remote sensing satellite, it would also be used as a platform for trying out advanced technology in the coming launches, officials said.

The eight nano satellites, built by universities and research institutions in Canada and Germany, are being launched under a commercial agreement. Of the eight nano satellites, six form a cluster called NLS-4. These satellites were built to test nano technologies for use in satellites.
The weight of these nano satellites vary from three to 16 kgs with a total weight of 50 kgs. "The launch campaign is progressing satisfactorily at Satish Dhawan Space Centre", ISRO officials said. The satellites were already integrated with the launch vehicle and the vehicle was moved to the second launch pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, they said.

The objective of the 'Indian human space flight' is to develop a space vehicle to carry a crew of two to low earth orbit and return safely to a pre-determined destination. The duration of the proposed mission is about a week.

There will be provision for emergency mission abort and crew rescue. The main task before ISRO is "man-rating" of indigenously built Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), which would launch an autonomous orbital mission vehicle.

"The reliability of GSLV is 90 per cent. Man-rating means its reliability should be 99.99 per cent", the official said. Then facilities will have be established to train astronauts, besides designing of crew module. In January 2007, ISRO demonstrated India's capability in important technologies such as aero-thermo structures, deceleration and floatation systems, navigation, guidance and control, with the successful launch, in-orbit operation, re-entry and recovery of SRE-1 (space capsule recovery experiment).

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