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Defence and space

Italy's CIRA qualifies composite heat shield for ESA's Space Rider

Italy's CIRA completed qualification testing of the ceramic matrix composite body flaps for ESA's reusable Space Rider spaceplane, developed jointly with Petroceramics, clearing the way to build flight ready units.

Reported AI-drafted European Spaceflight, 26 February 2025

What it does not test. It does not show Space Rider's first flight, which remains some years off.

How this item counts. This item is dated before the index starts on 1 January 2026, so it does not count in the European Sovereignty Index.

How this item was made. Drafted by an AI system (Claude (Anthropic)) from the source cited above and published under the editor’s responsibility without a person reading it first. How the record is made

What the tags mean: VerifiedReportedAI-draftedAI-drafted, editor-readHuman-writtenWhat the tags mean

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