From Spacelab to the International Space Station: The Italian Contribution. A Brief Story of International Successes

摘要

In the history of Human Spaceflights, dominated by the American and the Russian enterprises, there aresome chapters, not so well known, written by the Italians engaged in challenging realizations part ofInternational Space Programs.This is the case, in particular, of the "Pressurized Manned Modules", special space elements designed andbuilt in Italy to be the "Habitats" for supporting the presence of Humans in the adverse extraterrestrialenvironment.The venture was initiated forty years ago when the Europeans had been offered the possibility toparticipate to the U.S. Post Apollo Program, with the responsibility to develop "SPACELAB", the MannedLaboratory to be flown on board of the Space Shuttle in the cargo bay of the Orbiters.In such a cooperative program of high strategic significance for the reinforcement of the TransatlanticAlliance, destined to open to the Europeans the presence of Humans in space and leading to theirparticipation to the future International Space Stations, the role of Italy, has been quite relevant.Aeritalia Space System Group, now-a-days Thales Alenia Space Italy, within the Industrial Consortiumheaded by VFW-Fokker/ERNO, acquired the full responsibility to design, manufacture and qualify theStructure and the Thermal Control of the Spacelab Pressurized Module.The complex story of the SPACELAB development, staring from the early phases of the InternationalNegotiations leading to the Intergovernmental Agreements, and from the fierce competition of the IndustrialConsortia for the adjudication of the prestigious contract, is briefly recalled, bringing in evidence the factsthat marked the Italian role in this extraordinary venture.The main events that characterized the design and construction of the Pressurized Module, up to themaiden first mission of SPACELAB-1 on board of Columbia on 28 November 1983 are illustrated.The story briefly covers, at the end, the studies on "Pressurized Manned Modules", aimed to becomeintegral part of the International Space Station, that Aeritalia has conducted, around the end of the eighties,on two fronts: on one side in support, within ESA, of the idea that has led to the COLUMBUS Laboratory aselement of the European contribution to the Station, and on the other side in favour of the BilateralCooperation between the Italian Space Agency and NASA that ended with the development of the MPLMMultipurposePressurized Logistic Modules.