spacetoday.net: Iran launches rocket carrying animals into space

Iran launches rocket carrying animals into space

Posted: Thu, Feb 4, 2010, 6:05 AM ET (1105 GMT)
The Iranian government said Wednesday that it had launched a rocket carrying a capsule with a number of animals in it into space. The Kavoshgar-3 rocket, launched from an undisclosed site within Iran, carried a capsule with a mouse, two turtles, and some worms. Iranian officials provided few technical details about the flight, and it was unclear if the capsule achieved, or was designed to achieve, orbit; reports indicated that the capsule landed back in Iranian territory a short time after the launch, suggesting that it was a suborbital flight. The government also used the occasion to highlight new developments in space technology, including several satellite designs and a new small orbital launch vehicle.