TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran will likely send a new home-made satellite into the orbit before the end of the current Iranian year (which ends on March 19, 2016), a space official announced on Sunday.

"We may have a launch by Esfand (the last month of the Iranian year - February 20-March 19)," Head of the Iranian Space Agency (ISA) Mohsen Bahrami said in Tehran today.

Noting that at present Iran is preparing the ground for sending a satellite into the orbit, he said that there will be some news for the public in this regard in the next two weeks.

Iran has taken long strides in recent years to develop its space industry and to build different types of satellites and explorers.

In February, Iran’s domestically-made National Fajr (Dawn) Satellite was launched into orbit and started transmitting data to its stations on earth.

The satellite made its first contact with its ground stations hours after it was put into the orbit

Fajr satellite is technically characterized by an orbit which could promote from 250 to 450 kilometers through a thruster or an engine.

Equipped with GPS navigation system, Fajr, weighing 52 kilos, is the fourth Iranian-made satellite which was put into orbit after three others between 2009 and 2012.

After Iran launched its first locally-built satellite, Omid (Hope), in 2009, it put two other satellites including, Rasad (Observation), and Navid-e Elm-o Sanat (Harbinger of Science and Industry) into space.

By Fars News Agency