More Money, More Space.

Italy expects to ramp up space spending sharply over the next five years, putting it in a position to consolidate its claim as Europe's second major space power. Italian space agency ASFs director general, Sergio Vetrella, says the agency is proposing an 8-9% increase in its next three-year spending plan, which it expects to secure when budget decisions are taken in the coming weeks.

On top of that, Vetrella said, the government has agreed to release about 600 million euros ($720 million) in funding that was authorized but not disbursed in 1997-99, starting with a 150-million-euro installment this year. Rome has also promised to release some 300 million euros in spending earmarked for the Galileo satellite navigation program frozen in 2003-04, starting with 70 million euros or so this year.

About 45% of the additional money will be allocated for European Space Agency projects and the rest for the domestic space program, comparable to the current ratio, Vetrella indicated. The extra funds are aimed in particular at Earth observation, including the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security network, launchers and Galileo services, which Vetrella considers grossly underfunded. Space exploration would also benefit, exemplified by Italy's 237-million-euro commitment to the ExoMars mission, which is more than twice that of France, Germany or the U.K.

The additional financing is geared toward strengthening Italy's position as Europe's second-biggest spender on space behind France and ahead of Germany. Italian spending has steadily increased to 809 million euros last year from 766 million euros in 2001. German spending, in contrast, has been flat, and currently totals only about 700 million euros a year. However, this does not include spending on military space.

Funding levels for Italy's national space effort â€" 421 million euros last year â€" already dwarf those of Germany, which are currently running at barely 150 million euros a year.

However, Italy's 14.2% share of the ESA budget is still a distant third to Germany's (22.7%) and France's (29.3%). It is rising rapidly, though: Rome has committed to 17.4% of total spending in the next five-year ESA budget plan, approaching Germany's 20.7% stake, and its share of discretionary programs (20.8%) is already higher.

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By Michael A. Taverna, PARIS