Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano has said he hopes to bring a touch of Italy to the Artemis III mission, which he will pilot near Earth in 2027 during tests of two lunar modules.
The Artemis II mission in April featured Texas brisket and tortillas for the Orion spacecraft crew, while a jar of Italian sweet spread Nutella was also seen floating during a live broadcast from space.
“I do expect something Italian to show up on the menu, and I do not even have to bring it up because Italian food is a treasure of UNESCO,” Parmitano told AFP on Tuesday. He added, “Everybody wants some Italian food.”
The former Italian Air Force colonel has previously completed two missions aboard the International Space Station. He performed complex spacewalks, including one near-fatal incident when his helmet began filling with water due to a failure in the suit’s cooling system.
Parmitano will serve as lead pilot on Artemis III, sharing responsibility with commander Randy Bresnik. The spacecraft requires a crew of two to operate.
“We are both test pilots, and the spacecraft needs a crew of two to fly it, so we share the responsibilities,” he said.
“I feel honoured that I was chosen for this role,” he said, adding that the assignment came as a surprise. “I did not know that it was in the running for that position.”
Parmitano, 49, and father of two daughters, said he felt “very humbled” by the complexity of the mission.
He wears a uniform carrying the Italian flag and the European Space Agency (ESA) patch, which he described as “strong partners.”
“When NASA chooses a European astronaut to be a pilot, it sends a strong message that our leadership is understood, that our cooperation is valued, and that our technical expertise, both in our construction because Europe builds part of the spacecraft, but also our personnel, is solid,” he said.
The crew will also include African American astronaut Andre Douglas and US astronaut of Salvadoran descent Frank Rubio.
Parmitano said he has known commander Randy Bresnik throughout his career, while noting that Douglas will be making his first spaceflight.
“We immediately bonded as soon as we found out that we were assigned to this mission,” he said.
He added that the diversity of ages and backgrounds “just enriches the crew in general.”
