A
Mission Control Center (
MCC) is an entity that manages
aerospace vehicle flights, usually from the point of lift-off until the landing or the end of the mission. A staff of
flight controllers and other support personnel monitor all aspects of the mission using
telemetry, and send commands to the vehicle using
ground stations. Personnel supporting the mission from an MCC can include representatives of the
attitude control system,
power,
propulsion, thermal,
attitude dynamics, orbital operations and other subsystem disciplines. The training for these missions usually falls under the responsibility of the flight controllers, typically including extensive rehearsals in the MCC.
INDIAN : ISRO MCC :-
For meeting the GSLV-MkIII launch requirements and future missions of ISRO, a new Mission Control Centre (MCC) with state-of-the-art facilities, has been realised at SatishDhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR. The MCC, situated about 6 Km away from the launch complex, monitors and conducts the launch operations during the pre-countdown and countdown phases until the injection of the satellite into orbit. It is linked to all the ground stations through communication links for voice, video and data transmission. The launch preparations on the vehicle are monitored from MCC, using a multi channel Closed Circuit Television System (CCTV). The important facilities at MCC include Mission Control Hall, Launch Control Centre, Real time Network, VIP Gallery, Video Conference, Mission Executives rooms, Commentator rooms, etc.
Major functions carried out at MCC include:
- Co-ordination of different operations during finalvehicle servicing and checkout operations
- Conducting simulation exercise prior to pre-countdown and actual launch countdown
- Scheduling and regulating mission activities during countdown phase
- Monitoring the progress of launch operations during final countdown phase and taking decisions at appropriate time
- To have a hold on countdown in the event of any deviations from launch operation procedure or hazardous situations
- Monitoring the status of launch vehicle systems, spacecraft and other ground support systems, during countdown
- Authorising launch after ensuring that all the systems are functioning satisfactorily
- Monitoring and displaying the performance of vehicle, spacecraft and ground systems after lift-off
- Displaying all important mission performance details up to injection of satellite(s) into orbit(s)
The major subsystems of the new MCC are:
- Data Processing Systems to acquire the status data of all the ground stations participating in the mission as well as the checkout data from Vehicle and Satellite systems. This data is processed and the processed data is transmitted to MCC displays. The data is also logged for post flight analysis. The Data Processing System also processes the Countdown Hold/Release and readiness status from each Mission Executive console in MCC and generates synthesised information
- Real Time Network: All data sources and sinks are geographically distributed all over the Range and in various parts of the Globe. A real time network with state-of-the-art technology is deployed with complete redundancy to meet the mission requirements
- Wide Screen Display Systems, which are common for mission executives, VIPs and VVIPs provide video and trajectory related information in video, text and graphic formats
- Consoles with data displays and audio / video facilities: Mission executives and all other important personnel involved in decision making sit at respective consoles during countdown phase, till lift-off
- Electronic Interfacing Systems (Timing, Communications, CCTV and Data Links)
Consoles Altogether, there are 38 consoles, arranged in 4 rows. Each console is of 3-bay open type and has the following hardware systems installed in it:
- Two PCs and one TV monitor with video selection keyboard
- 16 channel intercom units
- Count down Hold / Release switches at designated consoles
Wide Screen displays
- Five 150 inches screens with rear projection system
- Five Single chip DLP projectors with wide angle lenses with 100% hot standby
- Information displayed in the large screen displays:
- Close up and overall view of propellant fillingoperations
- Ignition sequence and launch vehicle lift-offviews
- Initial trajectory of vehicle as tracked by videocameras
- Ground stations status
- Flight parameters display
- Automatic Launch Sequence (ALS)
- Graphical display of flight trajectory
- Alphanumeric / Animation display of flightevents
Features of real time network
- Totally isolated two chains of network (Main and redundant)
- Giga Ethernet (1 Gbps) back bone network
- One IP Subnet each for input network and output network, in each chain
- Time synchronisation of switches and computer systems with GPS based time server
- Three pairs of servers, one is redundant to the other
- Embedded system based network time server in each chain
- Range stations network is through single mode fiber, and external stations network is extended through leased lines and sky link
Other Facilities at Mission Control Centre
- VIP gallery to accommodate 200 persons with attaching launch viewing lounge
- Separate VVIP gallery to accommodate 60 persons with attached launch viewing lounge
- Office rooms for Mission Executives
Launch Control Centre :
A Launch Control Centre (LCC) is realised in the ground floor to take care of Vehicle Checkout operations. LCC is configured as two control halls, namely, LCC1 and LCC2, to take care of parallel operations from both the launch pads. Sixteen consoles are provided in each entity to carry out the vehicle checkout operations. Specialists’ display consoles have also been set up here to offer vehicle data to experts and specialists from centres related to launch vehicle development.
Features of LCC
- LCC 1 & LCC 2 are identical in hardware configuration and are easily configurable for PSLV, GSLV/GSLV-Mk III launches from any of the two launch pads
- Data Analysis PC of each console is connected to an independent data network
- Hard-line multiplexing system for reducing hardline requirements between LCC & remote systems
- Display nodes for data presentation to system experts
- All Hardware interfaces are provided with dual redundancy
- System Time of all consoles synchronised