Mission control goes virtual

Fundamentally, Mission Control Rooms (MCRs) have not changed much since the dawn of the space age: experts sit at workstations arranged in rows in front of a host of displays and audio equipment. It's time to innovate.

Today, it is neither necessary nor advisable to force people to physically be in the same room to work together. A team from the Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg in Germany wants to transfer the MCR into virtual reality. Each virtual MCR (VMCR) user will be able to configure their own virtual space, including an individual workspace and display setup.

Users will be able to move freely and interact with the VMCR using head movements and gesture recognition as well as conventional input devices. Several operators will be able to interact and collaborate using text chat, integrated audio connections, and avatars. The VMCR implementation will also feature standard collaborative tools such as virtual reality whiteboards, file sharing, and a self-hosted wiki for documentation.

"Working together in virtual reality will not only be immersive and interesting, but also productive," says Michael Strohmeier, from Julius Maximilian University.

"The funding from ESA Discovery has allowed us to fully focus on transforming the VMCR into a truly collaborative environment for mission control," adds his colleague, Felix Sittner.

ESA engineer Sebastian Martin concludes: "To us, such a solution could not only provide more flexibility, but also allow us to work even closer across our Member States. Strategically, we aim to extend distributed operations capabilities, and virtual workspaces and collaboration areas can form an important part in this."