Asteroid Monitoring from Earth and Space ITALY protagonist

IN THE HEART Esrin of Frascati the renovated has been inaugurated Near-Earth Object Coordination Center (Neocc) ofEuropean Space Agency (ESA), which will monitor the orbits of asteroids and comets, evaluating the danger posed by bodies approaching the Earth.

At the end of November, instead, the Italian mini satellite will be launched LICIACube, made in the Argotec factories in Turin with the financing and collaboration of theItalian Space Agency (ASI), to document the final moments of NASA's 'kamikaze' Dart probe, the first to attempt to hit an asteroid to change its trajectory.

ASTEROIDS – Planetary defense is a priority for Italy

The LICIACube team supporting mission operations is an all-Italian team and includes researchers from the National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), the Polytechnic University of Milan, the University of Bologna, the Parthenope University of Naples and the Ifac-Cnr of Florence. "Planetary defense is a priority for Italy, as can also be seen from participation in the first asteroid deflection experiment", comments the president of theSo, Giorgio Saccoccia.

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN Asteroids on their way to Earth, here's the roadmap

“Our country has supported the programs from the very beginning Esa dedicated to space safety, as an opportunity to offer global value to the skills of the Italian scientific community whose work focuses on the danger of asteroids.

Over the years, ESA has made progress in the key areas of impact monitoring, asteroid tracking and discovery observation, thanks to the extraordinary work of a team of highly qualified experts.

Worth mentioning is the state-of-the-art logistics environment inaugurated today at Esrin. A clear sign that we are on the right path towards protecting our planet and its citizens.”