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JPL Space Ops Mission Control

JPL Space Ops Mission Control
JPL Space Ops Mission Control This image shows a panoramic view of the Space Flight Operations Center at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, CA. This is where mission engineers and scientists communicate and keep track of their mission’s spacecraft via NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN). The DSN is only international network of antennas that provide the communication links between the mission team on Earth and the spacecraft and rovers on Mars. The network is comprised of three deep-space communications facilities placed approximately 120 degrees apart around the world: at Goldstone, in California's Mojave Desert; near Madrid, Spain; and near Canberra, Australia, a strategic placement that allows for constant observation of spacecraft as the Earth rotates on its own axis. NASA / RadioFan / Creative Commons Wikimedia