The whole everything face up is really throwing me for a loop. Is it ok to look at the back of station or missiosn cards? Are you allowed to look at what the next card in your deck or a station deck are?
Nope. You can't look at the back of anything, or lift up a card to see what's below. The more you play the game, the more you will remember what is on the back. If you have a good memory, you can know exactly what is in your deck and where unless you had to shuffle.
Oh really? That changed a lot! So many rule changes, I can't wait to get my copy and read the new rules!
Is the information hidden? Technically, no. If you really want to you could have a reference sheet and know exactly what is in your deck and on the back of the cards. The problem is that it creates many more options that can overwhelm a new player and stall the game. The idea behind not looking is so that a new player can get used to the game little by little. Once you are at the point that you know the back of every card, you are prepared to handle all of the information.