Maria Daniela Graziano , University of Naples Federico II
RODiO is a project funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), involving a cluster of four CubeSats flying in formation with the ASI PLATiNO-1 (PLT-1) mission. The CubeSats maintain a safe distance of tens of kilometers from PLT-1, using formation-flying techniques to stay within a few hundred meters. Each CubeSat carries an X-band SAR instrument for bistatic echo collection, using PLT-1 as an illuminator. One CubeSat also features a hybrid rocket propulsion system for high-thrust orbit reconfiguration (10 N). Phase A of RODiO confirmed the mission’s feasibility, addressing radar, electronics, propulsion, and formation-flying solutions for a 16 U CubeSat.