LICIACube (Light Italian CubeSat for Imaging of Asteroids) is a pioneering Italian space mission developed and managed entirely by an Italian team under the auspices of the Italian Space Agency (ASI). It is a 6U CubeSat weighing 14 kg, designed and built by the aerospace company Argotec, with significant scientific collaboration from Italian research institutes and universities, including INAF and the Polytechnic of Milan[1][2][7]. The mission's primary objective is to support NASA's Double Asteroid Redirect Test (DART) by autonomously capturing high-resolution images of the asteroid Dimorphos and the ejecta plume resulting from DART’s kinetic impact, which aims to test asteroid deflection techniques for planetary defense. LICIACube was launched aboard the DART spacecraft in November 2021 and deployed in September 2022, marking it as the first Italian deep-space mission with full autonomy extending to ground segment operations such as data processing and archiving managed by ASI’s Space Science Data Center (SSDC)[2][3][7][8]. Equipped with two specialized optical cameras—LEIA (a narrow-field, monochromatic catadioptric camera) and LUKE (a wide-field RGB imager)—LICIACube autonomously tracks Dimorphos and captures detailed images of the impact crater and debris plume. This data is essential for validating impact models and advancing planetary defense technologies[3][5][8]. Key achievements include the successful integration with DART, autonomous navigation and imaging during the flyby, and the contribution of unique scientific data that NASA and the international community use to evaluate asteroid deflection capabilities. The mission represents a milestone for Italy's space sector, showcasing advanced CubeSat technology, autonomous deep-space operations, and international collaboration in planetary defense[1][3][7]. Currently, LICIACube continues to provide valuable data and experience that will influence future missions aimed at asteroid characterization and planetary defense, cemen