Successfully completed space qualification tests for the first Parthenopean microsatellite IREOS-0 and two MiniLab 3.0 payloads
Another major milestone for CIRA’s Space Qualification Center. At our Capua laboratories, qualification campaigns were successfully concluded for the IREOS-0 microsatellite and the two MiniLab 3.0 modules, both developed by ALI S.p.A., a Space Factory group company.
REOS-0, representing the first demonstrator mission of the IRENESAT-ORBITAL program, is the first microsatellite designed to host scientific experiments in microgravity and to validate advanced atmospheric reentry and recovery technologies in orbit. For its mission, IREOS-0 will be integrated onto D-Orbit's ION orbital transportation and deployment platform.
The two MiniLab 3.0 modules, featuring proprietary 2U technology and integrated aboard IREOS-0, funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), are automated mini-laboratories guided by artificial intelligence for the autonomous execution of biotechnological and pharmacological experiments in orbit under microgravity conditions.
During the test campaign at CIRA, IREOS-0 successfully passed thermal vacuum testing, demonstrating full resistance to the extreme conditions of high vacuum and thermal cycles characteristic of space. In particular, the operational functional test for the opening of the innovative reentry protection system was successfully carried out.
Concurrently, the two MiniLab 3.0 successfully completed both vibration testing, which simulates the intense dynamic stresses of the launch phase, and thermal vacuum testing, simulating the operational environmental conditions of the space mission.
The launch of IREOS-0, funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), is scheduled for February 2027 aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 vehicle, aiming to conduct a one-year LEO orbital mission.
The successful outcome of these complex qualification activities confirms CIRA's role as a strategic center of excellence supporting the development and validation of national and European aerospace technologies.