Mission Control Knowledge Synchronization: Operations to Reference Performance Cycles

Abstract

Capturing and utilizing previously generated knowledge is crucial to an organization's development and responsiveness in a dynamic environment. Even so, the creation of a reference source from operational knowledge is affected by situational contexts, events, and organizational constraints. The organizational operations to reference cycle within NASA's Mission Control Center can be examined by the approval process of Flight Rule Change Requests (FRCRs). The FRCR process is intended to document knowledge capture and synchronization tasks associated with space flight missions. External pacing exists due to the operational demands of the launch schedule; procedures are not written or modified without direct relation to operational experience or mission requirements. Preliminary analysis illustrates that, although the FRCR approval process has a cyclic nature with a natural frequency of about one month, launches act as critical forcing functions since procedural knowledge and controller expertise must be synchronized before each mission.