ESA Masterclass full series: Leadership at Mission Control



Enabling & Support

23/10/2020
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The ESA Masterclass collection brings main figures within the Agency to the fore, from the reducing fringe of area exploration. Join them as they share their journey, together with many years of expertise, data and classes learnt throughout their eventful careers in area.In the primary of the Masterclass collection, we head to Darmstadt, Germany, the place epoch-making robotic area exploration missions have been flown below the watchful eye of 1 man, Paolo Ferri. 

Introducing Paolo Ferri

ESA Masterclass: Paolo Ferri on management at Mission Control
With 36 years’ expertise at the European Space Agency, Paolo Ferri was till September this 12 months answerable for mission operations at ESA’s ESOC Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany.Paolo has performed a number one function in making certain the success of bold missions like Eureca, Cluster, Venus Express and the epoch-making Rosetta – humanity’s first touchdown on a comet.In 5 episodes of ‘Leadership at Mission Control’, Paolo takes us by the main occasions in his profession, overlaying cornerstone missions, first makes an attempt, overcoming technical challenges, constructing various groups and fixing the surprising issues that come up with even the best-planned missions.

Paolo on considering outdoors the field

ESA Masterclass: Paolo Ferri on considering outdoors the field

Once a spacecraft is launched to area, that’s it. Thousands or tens of millions of kilometres away, there could be no handbook fixes, on-the-fly upgrades or last-minute adjustments. It’s now as much as groups at Mission Control to make use of the instruments and applied sciences at their disposal, in addition to their very own data, teamwork and creativity to beat the inevitable issues confronted by any mission in area.In ‘Thinking Outside the Box,” Paolo describes three missions that suffered surprising and doubtlessly deadly flaws: Smart-1, Cluster and Exosat, and the way on-the-ground data, innovation and ingenuity prevented their premature demise, permitting the science to go on.

On communication and teamwork

ESA Masterclass: Paolo Ferri on communication and teamwork

Throughout the life of each mission, radio indicators are transmitted between stations on floor and the spacecraft orbiting Earth, or voyaging throughout the Solar System. These indicators include directions and instructions despatched up from Mission Control, and beam down information resembling views of our planet collected by high-tech devices on board.However, this ‘conversation’ between area and Earth is barely pretty much as good because the conversations happening on Earth, the place efficient communication and teamwork are elementary. Effectively passing on data, expertise and challenges are the important thing to success throughout crucial operations, as groups evolve over the lifetime of decades-long missions, and between totally different mission groups themselves.In his second masterclass, Paolo Ferri illustrates the significance of efficient communication with the assistance of Exosat, a flipchart and a ‘blind’ spacecraft, Venus Express.

On management, teaching, studying

ESA Masterclass: Paolo Ferri on management, teaching, studying

As area missions have develop into extra advanced, the teamwork wanted on the bottom has additionally develop into extra subtle and difficult. Over virtually 4 many years at the forefront of Europe’s voyages in area, Paolo Ferri went from Operations Engineer on the Eureca mission to Operations Manager of the four-spacecraft Cluster mission after which the Rosetta mission, adopted by serving as Flight Director on Rosetta, Venus Express and Goce. His profession has been capped off by eight years as Head of Mission Operations for the Agency, overseeing all of ESA’s robotic mission operations.In his third masterclass, Paolo shares what he has learnt going from an engineering professional with full and particular data of a single mission, to being accountable at a senior supervisor stage for the success of dozens of missions operated by worldwide groups every as various, distinctive and complicated because the spacecraft they fly.

On working below strain

ESA Masterclass: Paolo Ferri on working below strain

Understanding the legal guidelines of the Universe is prime to flying missions in area. But one spacecraft below Paolo Ferri’s care appeared to be notably prone to Murphy’s regulation – ‘Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.’In 1992, ESA’s first-ever reusable satellite tv for pc, Eureca, was delivered into orbit (and later retrieved) by a NASA Space Shuttle. It spent slightly below a 12 months in orbit, and introduced a plethora of issues from Day 1. While it was finally profitable, Eureca required fixed care from engineering groups on floor in addition to hands-on assist from astronauts in orbit.As Deputy Operations Manager for the mission, Paolo Ferri explains in his fourth masterclass how this intense interval acted as a ‘school’ for him, as he and his staff had been put below immense strain by this orbiting ‘box of surprises’ consistently on the sting of disaster and mission failure.

On the tradition at Mission Control

ESA Masterclass: Paolo Ferri on the tradition at mission management

Step contained in the Main Control Room at ESOC, ESA’s European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany, and one factor turns into instantly clear: groups that function area missions are extremely hierarchical, and the Flight Director is indisputably in cost.How does this work, and why is that this the case? In the final of his Masterclass collection, Paolo Ferri delves into the tradition of operations, from written guidelines and procedures to equally vital unwritten rules that information the day-to-day working lives of these flying Europe’s spacecraft.Paolo explains that on uncommon events, an inner battle takes place when protocols, procedures and flight guidelines do not appear as much as the duty, and somebody should assume the large accountability of deciding whether or not or not they must be violated to maintain a mission functioning.

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