Francesco Salese is an Italian planetary geologist and Associate Professor of Stratigraphic Geology and Sedimentology in the Department of Engineering and Geology at the Università degli Studi “Gabriele d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, Italy. He is also a Senior Scientist at the International Research School of Planetary Sciences (IRSPS). He holds a PhD focused on Martian sedimentology and stratigraphy and a postgraduate specialization in Space Institutions and Policies.

His research bridges Earth and planetary sciences, with particular expertise in planetary geology, sedimentology, stratigraphy, fluvial geomorphology, hydrology, Earth observation, remote sensing and artificial intelligence applied to geosciences. His work combines satellite and orbital data, geological mapping, field investigations at terrestrial analogue sites and quantitative analysis to reconstruct surface processes and environmental evolution on Earth and Mars.

In July 2026, GAIA – Geological and AI Integration for Applications (Project No. 101344479) was awarded more than €1.8 million in funding through the Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Staff Exchanges programme. The Università degli Studi “Gabriele d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara is the coordinating institution, and Francesco Salese serves as the GAIA Project Coordinator, leading the international consortium. The project brings together universities, research organisations and companies to integrate satellite Earth observation, field geology and artificial intelligence. GAIA will develop new approaches to investigate geological processes, monitor natural hazards, including earthquakes, landslides, floods and volcanic activity, and analyze environmental change and natural resources. Earth-tested methodologies developed by the consortium will also be transferred to the geological exploration of the Moon and Mars.

Since November 2024, Salese has also participated in ArchiSpace – Space Architecture Design and Prototyping in Planetary Analogue Environments (Grant Agreement No. 101183089), a Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Staff Exchanges project. Within ArchiSpace, the Università degli Studi “Gabriele d’Annunzio” participates as a consortium partner, while Salese serves as the Scientific Coordinator. In this role, he leads the UdA team and coordinates the university’s overall scientific participation and contribution to the project. ArchiSpace develops and tests concepts for sustainable human habitats on the Moon and Mars by combining planetary geology, space architecture, engineering, planetary analogue research and the use of in-situ resources (ISRU).

In 2018, he was awarded a Marie Curie Individual Fellowship (Grant Agreement No. 795192) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program. The fellowship was hosted by the Faculty of Geosciences at Utrecht University , The Netherlands.

From 2020 until his appointment at the Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio”, he was based in Madrid as an Associate Researcher in MarsFirstWater – The Physicochemical Nature of Water on Early Mars, a European Research Council Consolidator Grant project (Grant Agreement No. 818602) hosted at the Centro de Astrobiología (CAB, CSIC-INTA), Spain.

Francesco Salese is actively involved in international planetary exploration. He serves as an Associate Scientist for the Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) aboard the European Space Agency’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter and is a member of the ExoMars Remote Sensing and Observation Working Group (RSOWG). Through these roles, he contributes to remote-sensing investigations, scientific observation planning and the geological interpretation of the Martian surface.

He is a member of the International Association of Sedimentologists and the Marie Curie Alumni Association.