(Xinhua) -- Iran had successfully launched its first rocket into space with the purpose of research, local media reported on Sunday. The semi-official Fars news agency quoted Ali Akbar Golrou, deputy head of Iran's aerospace research center, as saying that "the rocket has reached an altitude of 150 km." "It didn't stay in the orbit and returned to earth by the help of parachutes," he added. The international standard of the boundary between the earth's atmosphere and space is at 100 km above the ground, which means Iran's launch of the rocket has broke through that circumscription and should be categorized as a space test. Earlier in the day, Mohsen Bahrami, the head of Iran's aerospace research center, was quoted by the state television as saying that "the first space rocket has been successfully launched into space", adding "materials created by the Science and Technology and Defense ministries for research use were on the rocket."
Bahrami did not give more details about the range or nature of the rocket and its cargo, and only said that the test was in line with international regulations. A top Iranian lawmaker last month had said Iran would soon test-launch its rocket into space, while revealing that the country wanted to launch more home-made satellites with commercial purpose.
Iran in 2005 launched its first satellite, Sina-1, in a joint program with Russia, which was described by Iranian media as for research and telecommunications usage. Iran's launch of rocket on Sunday came at a time of escalating tensions between Tehran and the West as Iran refused to heed the UN Security Council's Feb. 21 deadline to stop its uranium enrichment activities. The U.S.-led West are pressing for wider sanctions on Tehran. The United States, along with some other Western countries, have been accusing Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons under civilian cover. Tehran has rejected such allegations, insisting on its "inalienable right" for peaceful nuclear energy.
