LEVEL 1 · TROPOSPHERE · FOLLOW
Get the agency launch-ready
Coordinate the five teams, agree a realistic launch date and run the first safe launch operation.
Command & Control
Plan, coordinate and govern the agency — turning five specialist teams into one safe, credible mission.
Role in the agency
Command & Control own the operational picture. They organise the programme, coordinate dependencies, manage capability and resources, and make the final GO / NO-GO / HOLD / ABORT decisions.
One agency journey
All five teams work towards the same agency mission at each atmospheric level. The challenge changes from following a supplied method to creating missions from real requirements.
Level 1 · TroposphereFOLLOW
FIRST LAUNCH
Prepare and conduct the agency's first safe, measured water-rocket launch.
Level 2 · StratosphereCONTRIBUTE
IMPROVE THE LAUNCH
Build on the first launch and demonstrate evidence-based improvements.
Level 3 · MesosphereINVESTIGATE
TEST PILOT
Build and fly a more complex test vehicle and investigate performance, recovery and capability gaps.
Level 4 · ThermosphereCOORDINATE
WEATHER MISSION
Plan, resource and conduct a real environmental mission using interacting systems.
Level 5 · ExosphereCREATE
MISSION ON DEMAND
Translate an external requirement into a safe, reliable and repeatable mission with minimal teacher direction.
Command & Control — from Follow to Create
The team mission changes at each level, but always contributes to the same shared agency objective.
LEVEL 2 · STRATOSPHERE · CONTRIBUTE
Plan the improved mission
Teach and use Gantt planning, track progress and adapt operating procedures to the local site.
LEVEL 3 · MESOSPHERE · INVESTIGATE
Build the capability needed for the mission
Identify capability gaps and decide whether teams should train, second or recruit people.
LEVEL 4 · THERMOSPHERE · COORDINATE
Lead and resource the agency
Develop practical leadership, budgeting and readiness-review skills.
LEVEL 5 · EXOSPHERE · CREATE
Set agency strategy and govern future missions
Decide what the agency can do next and create the governance for external mission briefs.
Why the progression matters
Students earn capabilities. Teams earn independence. Early missions are deliberately scaffolded. As the team proves that it can plan, investigate, coordinate and make sound decisions, the scaffolding falls away.
At Exosphere the goal is not a harder worksheet. It is a team capable of taking a genuine mission requirement and working out what to do.