Iran will launch its first satellite in the nearest few days, the country's president said on Saturday.
"The first satellite created by Iranian specialists will be orbited by an Iranian carrier rocket before the end of the next week," Iranian media quoted Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as saying.
He added that economic sanctions imposed by the United States against the Islamic Republic had a "favorable effect on the country's scientific progress."
According to Ahmadinejad, over 7,000 scientific inventions have been registered in Iran over the last few years.
In February Tehran successfully launched the Explorer-1 research rocket, which is reportedly capable of carrying a satellite into orbit, and unveiled the country's first domestically built satellite, named Omid, or Hope.
related report
Iran to orbit several satellites by 2010
Iran plans to send into orbit several domestic satellites by 2010, the head of the country's aerospace agency said on Monday.
Iranian state news agency IRNA reported on Sunday that an Iranian carrier rocket, Safir, had successfully orbited the country's first domestically built satellite, named Omid (Hope).
"We are currently working on a series of satellites that will be put into orbit within the next two years," Reza Taghipour said.
He said the satellites will aid natural disaster management programs and improve telecommunications.
The space official stressed that all of Iran's missile and space technology has been developed by national specialists, without foreign assistance.
Safir is Iran's first domestically made satellite carrier, capable of putting lightweight satellites into low earth orbit.
Source: RIA Novosti
