‘Tumbling Webcam:’ Head of Space Force Mocks Iran’s Reconnaissance Satellite

An Iranian rocket carrying a satellite is launched from Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Iran's Semnan province, some 145 miles southeast of Iran's capital, Tehran, on Feb. 9, 2020. IRIB via AP

The head of the newly-minted U.S. Space Force has mocked Iran’s claim to have launched a reconnaissance satellite, calling it a “tumbling webcam in space” in a message on Twitter underscored with the hashtag “space is hard.”

Following several failed launches of what it said were civilian-use satellites in recent months, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed on April 21 to have successfully launched a military reconnaissance satellite called NOUR.