Omid

Omid

Omid (Persian: امید, meaning "Hope") was Iran's first domestically made satellite. Omid was a data-processing satellite for research and telecommunications; Iran's state television reported that it was successfully launched on 2 February 2009. After being launched by an Iranian-made carrier rocket, Safir 1, the satellite was placed into a low Earth orbit. The launch, which coincided with the 30th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution and was supervised by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was also verified by NASA the following day as a success. Its Satellite Catalog Number or USSPACECOM object number is 33506. Ahmadinejad said the satellite was launched to spread "monotheism, peace and justice" in the world. The Tehran Times reported that "Iran has said it wants to put its own satellites into orbit to monitor natural disasters in the earthquake-prone nation and improve its telecommunications." Foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki said the satellite was launched to "meet the needs of the country" and is "purely for peaceful purposes". Since there was very little encryption on the satellite, data could be collected and read by citizens.Omid had the shape of a 40-centimeter (16 in) cube with mass of 27 kilograms (60 lb). Sources in the Iranian Space Agency say the satellite's sole payload was a store and forward telecommunication capability.The launch of Omid makes Iran the ninth country to develop an indigenous satellite launch capability.

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