Antonio Rodotà (1936–2006) - A former ESA director general

Antonio Rodotà (1936–2006) - A former ESA director general

founding fathers of Galileo, Europe's satellite navigation system. In Memoriam A n t o n i o R o d o t h (1936-2006) A Former ESA Director General E...

655KB Sizes 0 Downloads 48 Views

founding fathers of Galileo, Europe's satellite navigation system.

In Memoriam A n t o n i o R o d o t h (1936-2006) A Former ESA Director General

ESA's current Director General, JeanJacques Dordain, put it on record that "Antonio Rodot/t [had] led ESA into the 21st century", going on to say that he felt "honoured to have had the opportunity to follow his path and to build on the foundations he laid for a renewed Europe in space". Along with all ESA staff and contractors who knew and appreciated Antonio Rodot/l, he offered their deepest condolences to Antonio Rodot/t's family in their loss and a share in their grief. [From ESA Press Release, 24 February 2006]

COSPAR

Personalities

n this section of Space Research Today, we include inter alia biographies of COSPAR personalities, principally of the officers of COSPAR.

F

omler ESA Director General Antonio Rodot/t died in Rome on 23 February 2006, aged 70. He was appointed Director General by the ESA Council with effect from June 1997 and he served in this position until June 2003. Before taking over the reins at ESA, he was director of the Space Division of Finmeccanica (Italy) and a member of the boards of several international companies as well as Arianespace.

I

Wen-Rui Hu Vice-Chair: Scientific Commission G on Materials Science in Space

After graduating from Rome University as an electronics engineer, Antonio Rodot/t began his career with Selenia (1966/80), subsequently serving as head of the Compagnia Nazionale Satelliti (Italy) for three years. He then moved on to Alenia-Spazio in 1983 where he held a series of senior positions before becoming chief executive in 1995. During his term of office at ESA, Antonio Rodot/t - the first ESA Director General to come directly from industry played a key role in many space-related fields and was highly valued in the space communities of Europe and beyond. His fervent advocacy of international cooperation was widely recognized and he will be remembered for his fostering of the European dimension of space activities and as one of the

/ p

rofessor W-R. Hu is the current Director of the National Microgravity Laboratory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He was born on 2 April 1936, and graduated from

25