TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran announced Wednesday it has successfully launched a research rocket carrying a mouse, two turtles and worms into space — a feat President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said showed Iran could defeat the West in the battle of technology.

The launch of the rocket Kavoshgar-3, which means Explorer-3 in Farsi, was announced by Defense Minister Gen. Ahmad Vahidi to mark the National Day of Space Technology.

Iran’s state TV broadcast images Wednesday of officials putting a mouse, two turtles and about a dozen creatures that looked like worms inside a capsule in the rocket, which appeared to be about 10 feet long, before it blast off.

Vahidi gave no details on the research and there was no information on what experiment the animals would serve on board. The report also did not disclose when or where the launch took place.

Judy Siegel adds:

In Israel, leading aviation medicine specialists said it was “highly unlikely that Iran could learn anything scientifically important by sending worms, turtles and a mouse into space via a rocket. The first animal to go to space was a dog who flew in the Russian space vehicle Sputnik way back in 1957.

They noted that the “poor creatures” could easily be dead by the time they reached space and that it was extremely unlikely that the rocket — with the animals inside — could be recovered and examined. “It’s a one-way ticket,” said one expert.

The only conclusion is that Iran was doing it “just for show,” they said, adding with a chuckle that “he could better serve himself by launching the opposition to his government.”

Cartoon by Amir Mizroch and Stefanie Garden