Tasnim � Head of the Iranian Space Agency (ISA) Morteza Barari said the country plans to launch into orbit a new domestically made satellite dubbed �Zafar� in coming days.

Iran is preparing to launch a new scientific observation satellite in the "coming days," Barari told AFP on Saturday.

Manufacture of the Zafar (Victory) satellite "began three years ago with the participation of 80 Iranian scientists," he added, without giving a date for the launch.

The 113-kilogram satellite will be launched by a Simorgh rocket 329 miles above the Earth, where it will make 15 orbits daily, said Barari.

The satellite was designed to remain operational for "more than 18 months", he noted.

Its "primary mission" will be collecting imagery, said Barari, who said Iran needed such data to study earthquakes, prevent natural disasters and develop its agriculture.

"It will be a new step for our country," the official said, adding that Iran had previously managed to place a satellite into orbit 155 miles above the Earth.

While the Islamic Republic's satellite program has concerned some Western countries, Barari said Iran advocates for the "peaceful use of outer space. All our activities in the domain of outer space are transparent," he said.

The Iranian Space Agency hopes to construct five more satellites before March 2021, Barari added.