Luigi Broglio: the first italian space-dreamer.
- Paper number
IAC-08.E4.2.6
- Author
Ms. Daniela Cipollone, Scuola di Ingegneria Aerospaziale, Italy
- Year
2008
- Abstract
Italians generally believe that their country has nothing to do with space. Everyone is aware of the achievements of great scientists such as Guglielmo Marconi or Enrico Fermi but only few people know anything about the figure of Luigi Broglio. Von Karman tagged him “the space man” and he represents, beyond any doubt, the father of the Italian space program. His professional activity spans the great part of the twentieth century and it represents an ideal bridge between the first successes achieved by the Italian aviation and the first steps moved in the space field. Broglio embodied better than anyone else the spirit of this congress “from imagination to reality”: the perfect mix of the Ulysses spirit with a brilliant mind. His biography recounts a life of service, honor, and traditional values. Broglio has always been known for his integrity, common sense, courage and leadership. Under the lead of this strong and lone man Italy reached incredible goals such as the first European supersonic wind tunnel and space simulator and the first worldwide equatorial launch site, the San Marco platform, from which it’s possible to inject a satellite into a direct equatorial orbit. Italy was the third country to launch a satellite after the URSS and the USA. In 1971 NASA officially recognized the San Marco team as the best launch team of the year. Luigi Broglio wished to create a school, a culture, a tradition for his country and he is, still today, a powerful source of inspiration in an age that needs, more than ever before, the values that Luigi Broglio personified. The aim of this paper is to give a simple behind-the scenes account of the life of a man who held in his hands the firsts and at the same time the greatest Italian space enterprise, as a posthumous thank you.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-08.E4.2.6.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.