Columbus Control Center in Oberpfaffenhofen

The Columbus Control Center (Col-CC) is part of the German Space Operations Center (GSOC) at DLR. It is operated by the Integrated Team@Col-CC together with the European Space Agency ESA, which is the international partner in the ISS project. From here, about 75 scientists and engineers oversee European activities on the International Space Station (ISS). They are the direct link to space.

The main functions to be handled are:

• Monitoring and control of the Columbus Laboratory experiment facilities
• Remote monitoring and operation of life support systems such as air supply, power and cooling
• Supervision of the European and also non-European astronauts during their work in the European laboratory
• Planning and coordination of scientific experiment operations
• Provision of communication channels between ISS, ground stations, control and user centers
• Receiving, processing, distributing and evaluating data
• Responsibility for safety on board the Columbus laboratory
• Training of operations personnel and performance of simulations
• Operating the ColKa terminal for direct communication with EDRS and European ground stations.