Mission Control in Houston serves as the nerve centre for communication with both Mark Watney on Mars and the Hermes crew in transit. The team manages the agonising reality of signal delay - messages take between 4 and 24 minutes to travel between Earth and Mars - meaning every exchange is a slow-motion conversation where urgent problems cannot be solved in real time. Mission Control coordinates the technical problem-solving, relays instructions for Watney's survival improvisation, and manages the flow of information between the various NASA teams, JPL, and the international partners drawn into the rescue effort. Flight Director Mitch Henderson frequently advocates for the crew and Watney's interests against the more politically cautious leadership.