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World Congress 2023 • Aug 11, 2023

What I learned as a developer from accidents in space

Andrey Sitnik

What do historical Soviet space disasters teach us about software engineering? Discover why crashed space stations prove you must automate workflows and stop blaming users for bad UX.

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#1 about 3 min

Connecting space exploration and software engineering complexity

The inherent complexity of engineering domains necessitates breaking massive problems into modular, manageable systems.

#2 about 4 min

Rethinking user errors through a spacecraft docking failure

An aborted docking mission reveals the importance of redesigning systems rather than blaming operators for mistakes.

#3 about 6 min

Improving documentation and reporting during a reentry fire

A dangerous spacecraft reentry teaches the value of proactively logging errors and contributing documentation fixes to open source projects.

#4 about 7 min

Embracing automation to prevent catastrophic manual errors

A space station collision resulting from manual control highlights why software teams should heavily rely on automated tooling.

Matching moments

1:10 min

Applying space exploration lessons to software operations

Robert Barron Robert Barron · WWC Europe 2026

1:54 min

Embracing failures and analyzing high-profile software engineering mistakes

Christian Seifert · WWC 2022

3:08 min

Preventing catastrophic failures in high-stakes software

Lars Hupel · WWC 2023

2:40 min

Balancing technical fail-safes with proactive moral compasses

Torsten Stiller Torsten Stiller · WWC 2025

4:40 min

Mitigating developer mistakes without a culture of blame

Eleanor Rumsey · LIVE

2:08 min

Navigating and mitigating the impacts of broken engineering cultures

Oskar Kruschitz Oskar Kruschitz · Europe 2026 Virtual

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