Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Gran Sasso Science Institute (GSSI) in L'Aquila, Italy.

I work on software engineering for complex, safety-critical, and mission-critical systems. My current research brings together space software systems, software architecture, model-driven engineering, Digital Twins, and AI-enabled engineering.

Website · Google Scholar · DBLP · GSSI profile · Email

• Software architectures for dependable, safety-critical, and mission-critical systems
• Software engineering for satellite autonomy and adaptive space systems
• Model-driven engineering, metamodeling, and model management
• Digital Twin engineering for cyber-physical and space systems
• Runtime reasoning, scheduling, anomaly detection, and trustworthy AI
• Assurance of AI/ML-enabled components in regulated environments

At GSSI, I develop methods and architectures for software-intensive space systems, with particular attention to satellite autonomy, Digital Twins, runtime adaptation, and assurance.

I lead GSSI activities on Digital Twin and software engineering within the PNRR VITALITY ASTRA project, working with academic and industrial partners, including Thales Alenia Space Italy.

I am also the Scientific Director of SPACERAISE 2026, an international doctoral school connecting software engineering, artificial intelligence, robotics, Digital Twins, and space systems.

• TyphonML — Domain-specific languages and tools for designing hybrid polystore systems.
• MDEForge — A web-based repository and service platform for managing and reusing modeling artifacts.
• MEDIATE — Model-driven tooling for evaluating modeling artifacts.

• Reference Architecture for Autonomy and Adaptivity in Satellites
  Journal of Systems and Software, 2026.
• Applications of AI in Space Domain
  ACM Computing Surveys, 2025. DOI
• AI/ML for Safety-Critical Software: The Case of the Space Domain
  IEEE Software, 2025. DOI
• Automated Selection of Optimal Model Transformation Chains via Shortest-Path Algorithms
  IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 2020. DOI

My complete publication record is available on DBLP and Google Scholar.

I teach software engineering and model-driven engineering in the GSSI PhD program. My current course, Foundations of Space Software Systems, uses the space domain to study software architectures, Digital Twins, assurance, bounded reconfiguration, and trustworthy AI under critical constraints.

I contribute to doctoral supervision, scientific reviewing, program committees, and the organization of international events in software engineering, software architecture, and model-driven engineering.

I am interested in research and technology-transfer collaborations involving:

• software engineering for space and cyber-physical systems;
• Digital Twins and adaptive architectures;
• model-driven engineering and research software;
• trustworthy AI for safety-critical applications;
• advanced doctoral training at the intersection of academia and industry.

For research collaborations, teaching initiatives, or invited talks, contact me at francesco.basciani@gssi.it.