The successive failures raised suspicion of outside interference in IranвЂ™s program, something Trump himself hinted at by tweeting at the time that the US вЂњwas not involved in the catastrophic accident.вЂќ Satellite images from February suggested a failed Zuljanah launch earlier this year, though Iran did not acknowledge it. He later tweeted what appeared to be a classified surveillance image of the launch failure. The launch pad used in TuesdayвЂ™s preparations remains scarred from an explosion in August 2019 that even drew the attention of then-President Donald Trump. There have been five failed launches in a row for the Simorgh program, a type of satellite-carrying rocket.ДЄ fire at the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in February 2019 also killed three researchers, authorities said at the time. The program has seen recent troubles, however. Over the past decade, Iran has sent several short-lived satellites into orbit and in 2013 launched a monkey into space. вЂњIranian aggression, to include the demonstrated threat posed by its various missile programs, continues to be a top concern for our forces in the region,вЂќ Lodewick said.

Rob Lodewick, said the American military вЂњwill continue to closely monitor IranвЂ™s pursuit of viable space launch technology and how it may relate to advancements in its overall ballistic missile program.вЂќ It is Iran that has consistently chosen to take provocative actions,вЂќ Price said.ДЄ Pentagon spokesman, US Army Maj. вЂњIran has consistently chosen to escalate tensions. NASA fire satellites, which detect flashes of light from space, did not immediately see any activity over the site late Tuesday night into Wednesday.ДЄsked about the preparations, State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters in Washington that the US urges Iran to de-escalate the situation. Though it isnвЂ™t clear when the launch will take place, erecting a rocket typically means a launch is imminent. A later image Tuesday afternoon showed the rocket apparently on the tower. One set of images showed a rocket on a transporter, preparing to be lifted and put on a launch tower. Satellite images taken Tuesday by Maxar Technologies showed preparations at a launch pad at Imam Khomeini Spaceport in IranвЂ™s rural Semnan province, the site of frequent recent failed attempts to put a satellite into orbit. Each of the ZuljanahвЂ™s three stages will be evaluated during the tests, Hosseini said.

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