World

Iran launches first satellite

by julianw | August 17, 2008 at 01:25 pm

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Iran has launched its first domestically-produced satellite into orbit, Iranian state television reported Sunday. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ensured the event would carry maximum political symbolism by personally counting down the seconds to blastoff. One small step for Iran's space agency, one giant stress for jittery neocons and nervous diplomats concerned about Ahmadinejad's nuclear program.

The report said that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made the countdown for the Omid (Hope) satellite, which was launched on the Safir (Envoy) rocket.

Ahmadinejad termed the launching a great technological achievement for the Iranian nation.

The same rocket was first tested last February under the name Kavoshgar (Explorer) 1 upon Ahmadinejad's direct order from a space centre in order to prepare for the launch of the Omid satellite.

The ability to launch satellites into orbit may indicate progress in the Islamic republic's missile technology, which is another point of concern for Western countries worried by Iran's nuclear programme.