On any given day of a launch at Vandenberg, a group of operators in the Mission Flight Control Center here begin to feel the full effects of both excitement and stress as the countdown to launch nears.
While spectators come from all around to witness the spectacle of a launch at Vandenberg, an elite group of operators use numerous displays and the Mission Flight Control Team personnel to closely monitor launch vehicle flight performance and its ability to execute flight termination commands, should they become necessary, with one important objective in mind – public safety.
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