Shift changes, updates, and the on-call architecture in space shuttle mission control

• Published in: Computer supported cooperative work Vol. 10; no. 4-Mar; pp. 317 - 346
• Main Authors: Patterson, E. S., Woods, D. D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Johnson Space Center Springer Nature B.V 2001
• Subjects: Aerospace Medicine; Architecture; Communication; Computer Systems; Decision Making, Organizational; Domains; Ergonomics; Ethnography; Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Multinational space ventures; Personnel Staffing and Scheduling - organization & administration; Space Flight - organization & administration; Space life sciences; Space shuttle; United States; United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration - organization & administration; Work Schedule Tolerance; Non-Nasa Center; Nasa Discipline Space Human Factors; Manned; Short Duration; Flight Experiment; Sts Shuttle Project; NASA Discipline Space Human Factors; Non-NASA Center
• ISSN: 0925-9724; 1573-7551
• DOI: 10.1023/A:1012705926828

In domains such as nuclear power, industrial process control, and space shuttle mission control, there is increased interest in reducing personnel during nominal operations. An essential element in maintaining safe operations in high risk environments with this 'on-call' organizational architecture is to understand how to bring called-in practitioners up to speed quickly during escalating situations. Targeted field observations were conducted to investigate what it means to update a supervisory controller on the status of a continuous, anomaly-driven process in a complex, distributed environment. Sixteen shift changes, or handovers, at the NASA Johnson Space Center were observed during the STS-76 Space Shuttle mission. The findings from this observational study highlight the importance of prior knowledge in the updates and demonstrate how missing updates can leave flight controllers vulnerable to being unprepared. Implications for mitigating risk in the transition to 'on-call' architectures are discussed.