Welcome to Mission Control! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (Florida)

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station was the site of the Mission Control Center and the launch pads used for Mercury and Gemini missions. Pads 5 (Redstone) and 14 (Atlas) were used for Mercury, while Pad 19 was used for Gemini. A replica of the original Mission Control Center is located on the grounds of the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex.

The last mission that the Mission Control Center at Cape Canaveral supervised was Gemini 3, in March, 1965. The Mission Control facilities at the Johnson Space Center near Houston, Texas, were first used during Gemini 4 in June, 1965.

Answer: PAO (Public Affairs Officer)

The Public Affairs Officer, or PAO, served as the mission commentator, giving a play-by-play of the mission as it unfolded. Throughout the era of American manned flight, the PAO has sat toward the back of the Mission Control room, near the mission management team, and been considered to be the voice of Mission Control.

The Guidance Officer (GUIDO) monitored onboard navigation systems and guidance computer software. The Flight Surgeon (SURGEON) monitored the health of the crew during all phases of flight. And the Flight Dynamics Officer (FIDO) was responsible for monitoring spacecraft flight trajectory and performance.

Answer: Marshall Space Flight Center (Alabama)

Named after Nobel Prize-winning Secretary of State George C. Marshall, the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, served as the lead propulsion development site for many military and civilian rocket programs, including the Saturn family of space boosters. Dr. Wernher von Braun, the famed German rocket engineer, served as Marshall's first director from its opening in July, 1960 until January, 1970.

BOOSTER had a relatively brief job to do, in terms of time spent on the console. During the space shuttle era, for example, BOOSTER could leave the console after the space shuttle's main engines shut down, approximately eight and a half minutes after launch.

Answer: Drawing up in-flight abort plans

In addition to planning for the firing of retrorockets to return the Apollo command module to earth, RETRO was responsible for drawing up plans for any in-flight aborts that might take place. RETRO was also responsible for the planning of the trans-Earth injection maneuver that would kick the spacecraft out of lunar orbit and put it on a path home.

Answer: True

The Control Officer (CONTROL) was responsible for the guidance, navigation and control systems on board the lunar module, including the engines that powered the craft and the reaction control system thrusters. The Guidance, Navigation and Control Officer (GNC) performed a similar function for the Apollo command module during flight.

The Telemetry, Electrical and EVA Mobility Unit Officer (TELMU) monitored the lunar module's electrical and environmental systems, as well as the astronauts' spacesuits while they were on the lunar surface. TELMU was equivalent to the Electrical, Environmental and Consumables Manager (EECOM) position for the Apollo command module.

Answer: General purpose computers

The Data Processing Systems Engineer (DPS) had primary responsibility over the shuttle's five general purpose computers - essentially the brains of the spacecraft. The shuttle could not fly without those computers. DPS was also responsible for the Multi-function Electronic Display System, the "glass cockpit" installed on board each orbiter in the latter years of the shuttle program.

The shuttle's landing gear fell under the responsibility of the Mechanical, Maintenance, Arm and Crew Systems Officer (MMACS). Reaction control system thrusters fell under the control of the Propulsion Engineer (PROP). And transatlantic abort communications came under the Transatlantic Abort Landing Communicator (TALCOM), who like the Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) is an astronaut.

Answer: Managing space station trajectory

The Trajectory Operations Officer (TOPO) was responsible for all orbital maneuvers required by the International Space Station and for maintaining data about the station's orbital position. TOPO worked closely with the Attitude Determination and Control Officer (ADCO), who was responsible for maintaining the station's orbital orientation, and with Russian flight controllers as part of the job.

The Visiting Vehicle Officer (VVO) served as the liaison between the station and visiting spacecraft. The Thermal Operations and Resources Officer (THOR) was responsible for managing waste heat generated by the station's critical systems. And the Robotic Systems Operations Officer (ROBO) was responsible for the station's robotic systems, representing a team made up of experts from NASA and the Canadian Space Agency that planned and performed robotic operations.

Answer: Charles Duke

A native of Charlotte, North Carolina, Charles Duke was part of the historic conversation with Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong as his lunar module, Eagle, made its way to its landing on the Sea of Tranquility. Duke told Armstrong after the landing, "you got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. We're breathing again. Thanks a lot!" Duke became the tenth person to walk on the moon during the Apollo 16 mission in 1972.

Answer: Christopher Kraft

A native of the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, Christopher Kraft served as Flight Director during Mercury and Gemini. During Apollo, he left the role of FLIGHT to concentrate on mission management and planning. From 1972 until his retirement in 1982, he served as the director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, the facility in which Mission Control is based. His autobiography was appropriately titled, "Flight: My Life in Mission Control."

The other three men listed here were also important figures in NASA's history. Hugh Dryden supervised development of the X-15 rocket plane and served as Deputy Administrator of NASA from 1958 until his death in 1965. Robert Gilruth, Kraft's predecessor at the Johnson Space Center, served as the center's first director from 1963 to 1972. And George Mueller, NASA's Associate Administrator of the Office of Manned Space Flight from 1963 to 1969, proposed "all up" testing of the Saturn V moon rocket that helped accelerate the success of the Apollo program.

Answer: Kranz served as Flight Director for the first four space shuttle flights

If Christopher Kraft shaped Mission Control, Eugene Kranz defined it with his no-nonsense attitude and his demand that his controllers strive for perfection in everything they do. Kranz worked in Mission Control from the early days of Project Mercury all the way up to Apollo 17, the last lunar landing of the Apollo era.

He later served as Director of NASA Mission Operations, retiring in 1994. His autobiography, entitled "Failure Is Not An Option", gave an inside look into his time in the space program.