Italian astronaut's 2013 mission named after Modugno song

An Italian astronaut's upcoming space mission is to be called 'Volare' ('Flying') after the popular 1958 song by the late Italian singer-songwriter Domenico Modugno. European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano, a captain in the Italian air force, is to co-pilot a Soyuz TMA spacecraft and spend six months working on the International Space Station (ISS) from May-November 2013. Parmitano is currently undergoing training in Russia in preparation for the mission, which could also involve a space walk. The logo for the mission, presented together with the title in Rome on Friday, features the planet earth in the colours of the Italian flag on a dark blue background and orbited by the Space Station. The title is the brainchild of Norberto Cioffi, a 32-year-old engineer from Pantigliate near Milan, and the logo is the work of Ilaria Sardella, a 28-year-old student from San Giorgio Ionico near Taranto. The pair will now visit the training station near Moscow where Parmitano is preparing for his mission.