Venus Express operational toolset, the forerunner for the next mission operations model

Abstract

ESA's first mission to Venus was launched in 2005 as "spin-off" from Rosetta and Mars Express. The long duration of the mission, the dynamic of the operations and the scientific requirements evolution put a steady challenge on the mission control team to find new ways to improve the efficiency of operations. The Flight Control Team consolidated various tools inherited from other missions with own developments, interconnecting them and creating an efficient toolset that permitted a high degree of automation and flexibility throughout the mission.