The AGILE Mission

AGILE is an Italian Space Agency mission dedicated to observing the gamma-ray Universe. The AGILE's very innovative instrumentation for the first time combines a gamma-ray imager (sensitive in the energy range 30 MeV-50 GeV), a hard X-ray imager (sensitive in the range 18-60 keV), a calorimeter (sensitive in the range 350 keV-100 MeV), and an anticoincidence system. AGILE was successfully launched on 2007 April 23 from the Indian base of Sriharikota and was inserted in an equatorial orbit with very low particle background. Aims. AGILE provides crucial data for the study of active galactic nuclei, gamma-ray bursts, pulsars, unidentified gamma-ray sources, galactic compact objects, supernova remnants, TeV sources, and fundamental physics by microsecond timing. Methods. An optimal sky angular positioning (reaching 0.1 degrees in gamma- rays and 1-2 arcmin in hard X-rays) and very large fields of view (2.5 sr and 1 sr, respectively) are obtained by the use of Silicon detectors integrated in a very compact instrument. Results. AGILE surveyed the gamma- ray sky and detected many Galactic and extragalactic sources during the first months of observations. Particular emphasis is given to multifrequency observation programs of extragalactic and galactic objects. Conclusions. AGILE is a successful high-energy gamma-ray mission that reached its nominal scientific performance. The AGILE Cycle-1 pointing program started on 2007 December 1, and is open to the international community through a Guest Observer Program

APHRODITE: Design and Preliminary Tests of an Autonomous and Reusable Photo-sensing Device for Immunological Test aboard the International Space Station

Preliminary results of the design and manufacturing of APHRODITE, a compact and versatile device for carrying out analyses of biological fluids during space missions that will be used as a technological demonstrator on board the International Space Station (ISS) for the quantitative determination of salivary biomarkers indicators of alterations of functionality of the immune system. The paper addresses the design of the main subsystems of the analytical device and the preliminary results obtained during the first implementations of the device subsystems and testing measurements. In particular, the system design and the experiment data output of the lab-on-chip photosensors and of the front-end readout electronics are reported in detail

A water-filled garment to protect astronauts during interplanetary missions tested on board the ISS

Abstract As manned spaceflights beyond low Earth orbit are in the agenda of Space Agencies, the concerns related to space radiation exposure of the crew are still without conclusive solutions. The risk of long-term detrimental health effects needs to be kept below acceptable limits, and emergency countermeasures must be planned to avoid the short-term consequences of exposure to high particle fluxes during hardly predictable solar events. Space habitat shielding cannot be the ultimate solution: the increasing complexity of future missions will require astronauts to protect themselves in low-shielded areas, e.g. during emergency operations. Personal radiation shielding is promising, particularly if using available resources for multi-functional shielding devices. In this work we report on all steps from the conception, design, manufacturing, to the final test on board the International Space Station (ISS) of the first prototype of a water-filled garment for emergency radiation shielding against solar particle events. The garment has a good shielding potential and comfort level. On-board water is used for filling and then recycled without waste. The successful outcome of this experiment represents an important breakthrough in space radiation shielding, opening to the development of similarly conceived devices and their use in interplanetary missions as the one to Mars

PERSEO: Personal Radiation Shielding in Space, a Multifunctional Approach

Space radiation is one of the main limiting factors for deep space human exploration missions. Besides the risk of long-term health effects due to galactic cosmic rays, the crew needs to be protected from solar particle events (SPE) - huge fluxes of ionizing particles, mainly protons with energies up to 100’s of MeV. Exposure to strong SPEs can lead to mission impairment and immediately endanger astronaut’s life. Differently from high energy galactic cosmic rays, SPEs can be shielded in space: best solutions under study are those based on the optimization of resources available on board, such as water, food, and waste. Wearable, portable and personal multifunctional radiation shielding systems therefore represents a very promising perspective. This paper focuses on such multifunctional approach to radiation shielding and, in particular, to the project PERSEO (Personal Radiation Shielding for intErplanetary missiOns). Funded by the Italian Space Agency, PERSEO led to the development of the prototype of a radiation protection garment for use in a pressurized space habitat: the garment can be filled with water at need, thus shielding astronauts’ most radiosensitive organs during SPEs. Water can be recycled after use, thus optimizing the use of available resources. The ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli has successfully demonstrated practicality and ease of use of a PERSEO prototype on the ISS, during the VITA mission, in November 2017. This paper reports on the key technical features of the PERSEO garment and on the results of the ISS on-orbit demonstration. PERSEO is funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), coordinated by the University of Pavia, and involves scientists from Thales Alenia Space, SMAT, AVIOTEC, ALTEC, University of Roma Tor Vergata, Kayser Italia and ARESCOSMO

Italian space agency science on the international space station: The vita mission

Thanks to the ASI/NASA MoU for the MPLM/PMM modules, the Italian Space Agency has access to the ISS utilization resources. In this frame, ASI has carried out over the years a thorough ISS Utilization program through 58 on board investigations in the fileds of biology and biotechnology, earth and space science, eductional activities and outreach, human research, phisical science and technology development and demonstration. Furthermore, ASI accrued three Shuttle flight crew member opportunities and the rights to one ASI provided ISS crew member for one on orbit increment every five years, with an assured minimum of three. Within this frame, ASI has assigned Italian astronauts of the European Astronaut Corp to three short-duration flight opportunities to ISS, namely Shuttle flights STS-100 (Umberto Guidoni), STS-120 (Paolo Nespoli, Esperia) and STS-134 (Roberto Vittori, DAMA), and to three ISS long-duration flight opportunities, with Luca Parmitano assigned to ISS Expedition 36/37 (Volare), Samantha Cristoforetti, the first Italian woman in space, assigned to ISS Expedition 42/43 (Futura) and finally again Paolo Nespoli, for his third visit to the ISS with the VITA mission. In order to complement the VITA Mission the Italian Space Agency coordinated a pool of scientists, industries leaders in innovative technological fields and academic researchers who worked on the design and implementation of payloads, experiments and scientific protocols in the fields of human physiology, cell biology, countermeasures, physical sciences, technological demonstrations and educational activities. ASI has taken advance of the industrial support by Kayser Italia, which provided services for the new payloads integration process, operations and logistics. Following a call for research opportunities, as well as promoting public-private partnership, ASI appointed for the VITA mission a total of 11 investigations, involving 29 different institutions and about 40 investigators. The experiments require: the use of ASI flight hardware developed for previous experiments, available either on ground or on-board; the access to on-board facilities provided by NASA and ESA, under ad-hoc agreements; the development of new payloads. The paper presents the investigations relevant to the VITA mission, describes the flight hardware and the major tasks relevant to the mission integration, the ground processing and the on-orbit operations. As well, a description of the ASI education and communication initiatives for the VITA Mission, jointly implemented with ESA, is provided. © 2017 by the International Astronautical Federation. All rights reserved

Advancing In-Flight Medical Diagnostics: The APHRODITE Lab-On-Chip System for Biomarker Analysis Abroad the International Space Station.

Addressing the context, the system reliability analysis for APHRODITE mission have been done in order to ensure its functionality for the autonomous and real-time analysis on board the ISS. Moreover, this paper emphasizes the magnet complex actuation subsystem in the system overview section. APHRODITE core system consists of a lab-on-chip (LoC) with integrated thin-film sensors in hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) able to host dual-analytes competitive chemiluminescence (CL) immunoassay. APHRODITE’s design allows for ultra- sensitive quantification of these target biomarkers present in sub-molar quantities, using a non- invasive approach. The core technical innovation of APHRODITE lies in functionalized magnetic microbeads that enable parallel multi-analyte tests and multiple subsequent runs on different samples upon a inline washing protocol. This design leverages immunoassays, making it ideal for detecting analytes in small volumes of complex matrices, even at low concentration

Characterization of a lab-in-chip for dual analyte assay in space missions

This paper presents an in-depth analysis of APHRODITE, a collaborative project involving the School of Aerospace Engineering (SIA) at Sapienza University of Rome, the University of Bologna, and Kayser Italia. Funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), APHRODITE serves as a technological demonstrator for deployment on the International Space Station (ISS) in late 2025, focusing on the determination of astronauts’ salivary biomarkers through an innovative biosensor. Extended space journeys require the implementation of health protection and preventive measures to address health challenges induced by microgravity, including issues such as muscle atrophy, metabolic changes, and an elevated risk of cancer [1]. This paper delves into the design, manufacturing, and testing of its microfluidic chip focusing on the detection subsystem and detailing its microfluidic simulations, magnet selection study, and critical role in the assay process. The microfluidic chip integrates thin-film sensors in hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) for dual- analyte competitive chemiluminescence (CL) immunoassays. The paper outlines the assay protocol, emphasizing the use of functionalized magnetic microbeads (MBs) for chip reusability and assay versatility [2,3], enabling multiple successive assays, and consecutively analyzing different target analytes. The design and manufacturing procedure of the microfluidic chip are described in-depth, highlighting the also the integration of a-Si:H photosensors, fluidic connectors, and miniaturized components. The detection subsystem, complemented by a magnetic actuation subsystem, low-noise front-end electronic board, and fluidic dispensing subsystem, meets the stringent requirements of space applications [4]. This work contributes to advancing biosensing technologies for health monitoring in space, providing a detailed characterization of the APHRODITE microfluidic chip and its crucial role in enabling real-time analysis of salivary biomarkers during space missions [5-9]