From the 12th to the 30th of May, SPACERAISE will train 150 Ph.D. and Master’s students, Researchers and Industry professionals from 32 different countries (including 8 European countries, 11 African countries, 4 Asian countries, 2 North American countries, and 8 Latin American countries). Lectures are delivered by 58 international teachers from academia, aerospace industries, and space agencies such as NASA, ESA, and ASI.
The inauguration ceremony, held at the Auditorium of the Gran Sasso Science Institute, started with greetings from the GSSI Rector – Paola Inverardi, Silvia Conforto – Pro-Rector of University Roma Tre for Technology Transfer, Pierluigi Biondi – Mayor of L’Aquila, Senator Guido Liris, Marco Marsilio – President of the Abruzzo Region, Edmondo Cirielli – Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and David Della Morte Canosci – delegate of the Minister of Research and Universities.
In a video message, the Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, praised the Gran Sasso Tech Foundation as an example of synergy between universities and industries, wishing success for SPACERAISE.
After the institutional greetings, the morning session – attended by ambassadors and diplomatic personnel from several countries represented by students attending the school – continued with a roundtable on the topic ‘Research, Education, and International Cooperation: the Strategic Role of Space Technologies’. The panel featured Massimo Claudio Comparini, Managing Director of Leonardo Space Division, Eugenio Coccia, President of the Commissione Grandi Rischi, Antonella Cavallari, Secretary-General of IILA – the Italo-Latin American International Organization, and Giovanni Campolo, GST Scientific Director.
SPACERAISE is structured in three specialized modules – each lasting one week – covering the most relevant challenges of software engineering in the space domain:
· Artificial Intelligence for Aerospace, covering topics such as AI onboard applications for predictive maintenance, image recognition, and anomaly detection;
· Robotics for Space Applications, covering topics such as Programming and safety-focused solutions for space exploration and maintenance robots;
· Digital Twins for Space Manufacturing and Satellites, covering topics such as Digital twin technologies in satellite production for predictive analytics and automation.
SPACERAISE embraces a multidisciplinary approach integrating expertise from universities, aerospace industries and space agencies such as NASA, ESA and ASI, thanks to several international faculty lecturing in English language. The industrial component is represented by teachers from Italian space champions such as Leonardo and its joint ventures Telespazio and Thales Alenia Space Italia. For the academic component, professors and researchers from prestigious Italian and foreign universities are present.
SPACERAISE is founded by Rome Technopole, Spoke 3, within the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), mission 4.2.1.5 and is under the patronage of Regione Abruzzo.
‘In just a few years, Gran Sasso Tech has become a reference model for the collaboration between universities and industries – said Fernando Ferroni, President of GST -. We lead numerous research projects, from advanced electronics to artificial intelligence, and we are engaged in training talents for the future economy. Within the context of international cooperation, programs like SPACERAISE can play a key role in an open and democratic development of the space economy.’
“The space sector – said Paola Inverardi, GSSI’s Rector – is a new frontier of research that presents us with scientific challenges of the highest level; as GSSI we are very pleased to host over 150 international participants in SPACERAISE. It brings together students from doctoral programs but also from master’s degrees, researchers, and professionals from the industrial sector: a synergy useful for the multidisciplinary fertilization that is one of the missions of our university, and we hope that all participants will take advantage of it.’
Massimo Claudio Comparini, Managing Director of Leonardo Space Division and President of Gran Sasso Tech Founders’ Assembly, declared:‘In the space sector, artificial intelligence, robotics, digital technologies for supercomputing, and digital twins are increasingly essential to address future challenges, such as exploration, data processing in space, and orbital operations such as space debris removal. Developing expertise in these areas means strengthening our ability to innovate and build responsibly the future of space. Our collaboration with research centers, universities, and advanced training schools is of strategic value for Leonardo. Along with Telespazio and Thales Alenia Space, we are key players in major European and international space programs, thanks to technologies emerging from our leading centers in Abruzzo, which highlights the importance of local territories and supply chains in achieving prestigious international results.’