the December 16 It is celebrated National Space Day It was created under the direction of the Prime Minister on October 14, 2021 and at the request of the Minister responsible for Space and Aviation Activities, Vittorio Colao. The aim of this day is to raise awareness and celebrate the Italian space sector, focusing on the impact of space on everyone’s lives.
December 16th marks the launch anniversary The first Italian satellite San Marco 1which occurred one evening December 15, 1964 From the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia (USA), in cooperation with NASA, at 9.24 pm Italian time. The launch made Italy the fifth country to design a satellite and put it into orbit after the Soviet Union, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada.
The launch of the first San Marco satellite is part of Space exploration project Which has a wonderful history.
The San Marco Project was officially born in 1961, when the Italian government approved the first three-year Italian space plan, developed in cooperation with the European Space Agency (ESA) and other international partners. This project was designed by Prof Luigi Broglio He proposed it to Amintore Fanfani, the head of the Italian government in those years. The plan immediately envisaged the introduction of a satellite built entirely in Italy and launched from an Italian spaceport.
The main goal of the program was leadership Scientific experiments in space, especially in the fields of geophysics and meteorology.
The project included launching 8 satellites Designed to conduct scientific research on air density in the ionosphere. Even if all eight satellites are not launched, the program still has great importance, not only because it paved the way for Italian space engineering, but because it also established cooperation in the space sector between the United States and Italy.
The development of the program led to the creation of San Marco Project Research Centre In 1993, under the supervision of the University of Rome “Sapienza”
The Government established the National Space Day in 2021, with the aim of promoting Italian contributions to science and technology in the field of space, and its strategic importance for our country.
Edited by Lily Cafarella
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