President Ahmadinejad lauded Iranian experts for applying domestic knowledge to build the center in Markazi province and said the country needs to use outer space potentials in order to have its special place in space.

The first space tracking center will monitor objects passing in orbit overhead.

Tehran has also expressed readiness to share the acquired data with other countries.

In recent years, Iran has made great leaps in space activities.

The country launched its first indigenous satellite, Omid (Hope), in 2009. The country also sent its first bio-capsule containing living creatures into the space in February 2010, using the indigenous Kavoshgar-3 (Explorer-3) carrier.

In June 2011, Iran put the 15.3-kilogram Rasad (Observation) orbiter in space. Rasad's mission was to take images of the Earth and transmit them along with telemetry information to the ground stations.

Iran also launched Navid-e Elm-o Sanat (Harbinger of Science and Industry), another indigenous satellite, into the orbit on February 3, 2012.

The satellite was a telecom, measurement and scientific one, whose records were reportedly used in a wide range of fields.

Iran is one of the 24 founding members of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, which was set up in 1959.