A new space operations center in Spanish territory

Spain has just made a niche for itself on the map of space research as a center of operations in the ground segment after the E-USOC center of the Polytechnic University of Madrid has monitored the STS-122 mission of NASA's space shuttle ATLANTIS. The shuttle, which was launched on February 7, 2008 and returned to Earth fourteen days later, was carrying the European module COLUMBUS to the International Space Station.

"We are responsible for the fluid physics rack (FSL), where we carry out an experiment called GEOFLOW , which consists of two concentric spheres with a liquid inside, and from which conclusions will be drawn about the movement of the earth's core and the tides ", explains Nicolás Carlier, a member of the Spanish team. "From the E-USOC we are the interface with the astronauts, we provide them with the guidelines to carry out the experiments through audio and video communication with the help of the COL-CC control center (Columbus Control Center) located on the outskirts of Munich, which in turn connects with Houston and these with space, "he adds.

E-USOC (www.eusoc.upm.es)