A backroom mission operations center for TechSat 21

The TechSat 21 satellite program is an Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) technology initiative which has an objective to demonstrate and validate microsatellite cluster system concepts and enabling technologies. The primary experimental objectives are to demonstrate formation flying algorithms and technologies for clustered satellites, and to demonstrate autonomous cluster and spacecraft operations. TechSat 21 consists of three satellites which will fly in various configurations with variable separation distances. Command and control of a cluster of satellites with multiple heterogeneous experimental objectives poses several challenges from a ground perspective. To assist in operating TechSat 21, AFRL is developing a backroom Mission Operations Center (MOC) which will be capable of performing, among other tasks: planning and scheduling; command generation; state-of-health (SOH) monitoring; telemetry playbacks; fault detection, isolation, and resolution (FDIR); data storage; and payload data analysis. The objective of this paper is to describe the MOC architecture, highlight the key components, and outline its planned operational use.