Samantha Cristoforetti
On November 23rd Samantha Cristoforetti, a Trentina from Malè in the Val di Sole, became
the first Italian woman, and only the third European, to go to space. She left with two other astronauts from Kazakhstan on a Soyuz rocket. She is currently coming to the end of her long-term mission on the International Space Station. Click here for a feature story by
ABC News on this Trentina luminary.
According to a posting on the ITTONA Facebook page, the night skies of Malè offered the young Samantha an unfettered view of the stars and motivated her to become an astronaut.
Go to Samantha’s European Space Agency page for photos and postings from her adventure in space.
Club member Father Alberto Mengon is from the Val di Rabbi, very near Malè. He has met
Samantha’s grandfather and uncle on more than one occasion in Malè; naturally, he says they are very proud of her. Samantha’s family operates the Hotel Liberty in Malè.
One thing Samantha has truly missed in space has been her Italian espresso. NASA recently approved use of a machine designed in Italy. It was supposed to arrive in January, but a launch explosion quashed that plan. The machine dubbed the ISSpresso (International Space Station) finally arrived this month (April).
NPR reports Samantha will probably be awarded the first cup, but she will have to share with her colleagues 🙂
Aerospace Industry in Trentino
Trentino has become a bustling high-tech center, thanks in part to the assistance provided by Trentino Sviluppo. Fly S.p.a., a company supplying components for the new Airbus 350, is located in Grigno, 25 miles east of Trento in the Valsugana.
Fly’s products are also found in space launchers, chemical and nuclear reactors, gas and steam turbines, and in deep-water equipment.
