Iran has just sent a small “Life Capsule” capable of carrying a monkey into space on the Kavoshgar-4 (Explorer-4) rocket, a step forward for the country’s burgeoning space program. The AP is reporting that the capsule flew 75 miles up into orbit and follows launches of communications satellites as well as a capsule containing “a mouse, turtle and worms.”
The government released no further information about the capsule. Generally, however, this is an interesting step for the country’s scientific community although, inevitably, this will be used as further proof to publicize to Iran’s hunt for our precious bodily fluids. For now, let’s just applaud a small nation’s efforts at space exploration.