MicroHETSat, the first fully electric and 100 percent Made in Italy satellite designed and built for the European Space Agency (ESA) by SITAEL, Italy's largest wholly privately owned space company-part of Angel Holding-continues its successful mission into space after its launch with SpaceX. MicroHETsat, weighing 75 kilograms and made entirely in SITAEL's "satellite factory" in Mola di Bari, Italy, was also made possible by a network of Italian companies that supplied some of the satellite's elements and by collaboration with CIRA for part of the space qualification. Thanks to a plasma engine, MicroHETSat is a true space elevator that allows, at low power consumption, maneuvers unthinkable until now for small satellites, avoiding collision risks and mitigating the problem of orbital debris, with important implications for sustainability in space activities.
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