August 18, 2008 -- Iran sent a home-built rocket sent into space this past Sunday, will be able to take a satellite into low orbit around the Earth.

Iran's State television said the Safir (Ambassador) rocket can put a small satellite into low earth orbit between 280 and 450 kilometers (160 and 280 miles) above the Earth.

Iran showed footage of the rocket launch, saying that the Safir is approximately 22 meters (72 feet) long, with a diameter of 1.25 meters and weighs more than 25 tons.

Iran's largest military missile, the Shahab-3, has a diameter of 1.30 meters and measures 17 meters in length.

Initial state media reports in Iran said that the rocket had carried the nation's first home-built satellite Omid (Hope) but this was later denied by officials who said only a test satellite had gone up.

Reza Taghipour, the head of Iran's space agency, also unveiled plans on Monday for more satellites, including one to be built with and for Islamic countries, state television reported.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has made Iran's scientific development one of the main themes of his presidency.

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