Qaem 100 (also Ghaem 100, , from a word meaning "upright") is an Iranian

expendable ''Expendable'' is a science fiction novel by the Canadian author James Alan Gardner, published in 1997 by HarperCollins Publishers under its various imprints.Avon Books; HarperCollins Canada; SFBC/AvoNova. Paperback edition 1997, Eos Books. It i ...

, small-lift,

space launch vehicle A launch vehicle is typically a rocket-powered vehicle designed to carry a payload (a crewed spacecraft or satellites) from Earth's surface or lower atmosphere to outer space. The most common form is the ballistic missile-shaped multist ...

developed by the

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), also known as the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, is a multi-service primary branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces, Iranian Armed Forces. It was officially established by Ruhollah Khom ...

(IRGC). It was unveiled on 5 November 2022 and is the first rocket of the Qaem family. After a successful suborbital test flight in 2022, the rocket performed its orbital maiden flight in 2023 carrying the Nahid telecommunication satellite but failed to put it in orbit. In the next launch in 2024, it succeeded in putting the Soraya satellite into 750 km orbit, breaking Iran's previous altitude record.

Development history

In 2020, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps successfully launched its first rocket, the Qased. Experience acquired through the Qased's development allowed the IRGC to develop the Qaem 100. Its first

suborbital A sub-orbital spaceflight is a spaceflight in which the spacecraft reaches outer space, but its trajectory intersects the surface of the gravitating body from which it was launched. Hence, it will not complete one orbital revolution, will no ...

test flight has been successfully carried out on 5 November 2022. The IRGC then announced Qaem 100 will "soon" be used to launch the Nahid satellite manufactured by the

Ministry of Information and Communications Technology of Iran The Ministry of Information and Communications Technology, or Ministry of ICT () established in 1908, is responsible for Mail, postal services, telephones and information technology in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Laying out and implementin ...

. The Qaem 100 is planned to be followed by other Qaem rockets including the Qaem 105, Qaem 110 and Qaem 120, which will ultimately allow Iran to put satellites into the 36,000 km

GEO Geo- is a prefix derived from the Greek word ''γη'' or ''γαια'', meaning "earth", usually in the sense of "ground or land”. GEO or Geo may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''GEO'' (magazine), a popular scientific magazi ...

orbit.

Design

Qaem 100 is the first three-stage

solid-fueled rocket A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder. The inception of gunpowder rockets in warfare can be cred ...

manufactured by Iran. It will be able to put a satellite weighing into a

LEO Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually mas ...

. This is twice the payload that the Qased rocket can lift while the two rockets weigh the same. The first stage is the Rafe motor that successfully passed its static ground test in January 2022. Rafe is able to produce of thrust. It uses gimballed thrust vector control (TVC) for steering and has a carbon-fiber composite filament-wound casing, which reduces weight compared to traditional casing. it utilizes Vahab motor as its third stage.

Launch history

References

{{ELVs Space launch vehicles of Iran Microsatellite launch vehicles 2022 in Iran Vehicles introduced in 2022 Solid-fuel rockets

Development history

Design

Launch history

See also

References