IRAN LAUNCHED ITS FIRST SATELLITE

AZG Armenian Daily
05/02/2009

International

Iran Tuesday successfully launched its first satellite into orbit,
a step hailed by Iran’s president as a "source of pride" for the
Islamic republic, according to state-run news outlets.

Reported satellite launch took place on the 30th anniversary of the
Islamic revolution in Iran.

The launch of the satellite Omid — which means "Hope" in Farsi —
was timed to coincide with the 30th anniversary celebrations of the
Islamic revolution in Iran, according to Iranian media reports.

Iran said the satellite had already completed its first mission —
to transmit a message from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
who spoke at the launching ceremony Monday night.

In his message, Ahmadinejad congratulated the nation and said the
successful launch improves Iran’s status in the world, the Islamic
Republic News Agency reported.

He stressed that both the satellite and the Safir rocket used to
launch it were made entirely by Iranian technicians.

Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said that despite the
small size of the Omid satellite, it will open the way for an Iranian
space program. He said Tehran plans to launch another satellite in
the future.

In August, Iran performed a test of a rocket capable of launching
a satellite into orbit. Iranian officials declared that mission a
success, but U.S. officials disputed that.

Senior U.S. officials had expressed concerned about the test of
the rocket, saying Iran could use the rocket to deliver warheads,
CNN reported.