Flag presentation at Palazzo Chigi

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni received ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano at Palazzo Chigi on Wednesday. She congratulated him on his assignment as pilot of NASA's Artemis III mission and handed him the official tricolour flag of the Italian Republic.

“We are very proud and very curious. Not many deserve it like you.”

The flag, normally kept at the premier's office, will fly aboard the spacecraft as a symbol of Italian ingenuity and identity.

Artemis III: a complex test flight

The mission is scheduled for the second half of 2027 with the goal of returning humans to the Moon. Parmitano outlined a demanding mission profile involving two different lunar landers and multiple orbital manoeuvres.

“It is a one-of-a-kind mission; we will test the systems essential for the Moon. We will perform rendezvous manoeuvres (including manual ones) dock with the lander, and allow astronauts to transfer between spacecraft.”

The crew includes NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Andre Douglas, and Frank Rubio. The first lander will burn up in the atmosphere; a second lander will then launch for a repeat of the tests using different procedures.

Training begins immediately

Parmitano said he will be "strapped tight into the spacecraft seat" from Monday, learning every detail of the Orion capsule. The training will also support development of the lunar lander test versions provided by Blue Origin and SpaceX. Parmitano stressed that much of the mission's final profile is still being defined.

Italy's space ambitions

During the meeting, the two discussed Italy's desire to take a leadership role in Europe's space sector. Parmitano, who lives in the United States and was in Italy on holiday, said it was his first meeting with Meloni. She asked about family contact during the mission.

“Fortunately technology helps us with that.”