Iran tried to launch a satellite into space this past Saturday night but failed to do so due to a malfunction at the launch site, the Yediot Aharonot newspaper reports.
According to the report, Iran tried to hide the malfunction, but an explosion occurred at the site and the experiment was subsequently canceled.
Iran has several times tried to launch satellites into space. In January, a top Iranian official claimed that Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard had launched a solid-fuel satellite carrier rocket into space and that the test was successful.
In December, Iran claimed it had successfully launched three research satellites into space. According to Ahmad Hosseini, a Defense Ministry spokesman, the rocket used was a Simorgh.
A day later, however, Iran acknowledged that the space launch failed to put its three payloads into orbit after the rocket was unable to reach the required speed.