Interview with Simonetta di Pippo: work, women and space

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 17:39:55 +0000

Simonetta di Pippo is an Italian astrophysicist who currently holds the role of Special Adviser to the Director General of the ESA — European Space Agency.

She is a woman with an impressive career to her name: for three years, from 2008 to 2011, she served as Director of Human Spaceflight at the Italian Space Agency; previously she worked on major international projects, including as ESA delegate to the ISS (International Space Station), European expert at NASA on the international Mars exploration programme, she contributed to the development of the Aurora programme for robotic solar system exploration, and in 2007 she was assigned responsibility for the mission of Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli, aboard Space Shuttle flight STS-120 — which many of you will likely remember for his intense Twitter activity during his last mission.

Author of the book “Astronauti”, and always devoted to her work and mission with great passion, committed to the popularisation of space exploration, I had the extreme pleasure and honour of interviewing her for the readers of Tiragraffi, at the last edition of Frontiers of Interaction, trying to understand her point of view on women in the space sector and on Italy as a protagonist in space exploration.

Simonetta di Pippo and Paolo Nespoli

In your life you have had an intense and glorious career. How and when did you decide to embark on this life and professional path? Was there a particular event that made you understand this was your road?

Astronauti on nhaima

Interview with Simonetta di Pippo: work, women and space