Mission Formulation Engineer (8-12 yrs)

Advanced Space•Westminster, CO

1d•$134,000 - $170,000•Onsite

About The Position

The team at Advanced Space is leading humanity back to the Moon and pioneering innovative solutions in the space industry. Based in Westminster Colorado, this incredible team is looking for a skilled and experienced Mission Formulation Engineer with 8-12 years of experience to support a growing list of projects and missions. Advanced Space is a rapidly growing, privately held business that operates with core values that reinforce we are customer obsessed and mission focused; when we see it, we solve it; we are one team, motivated by our vision; and we bring technical excellence and inexhaustible curiosity. This role will be based in Westminster, Colorado and an ideal candidate for this role will love not just the responsibilities but will also have a passion for the exploration, development, and settlement of space. This person will play an integral role in ensuring that our fast-paced and growing team is properly aligned and equipped to support mission planning, operations, and technological development. This position is restricted to U.S. Persons only, as defined under 22 CFR §120.62 (U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, refugees, and asylees). We do not provide visa sponsorship or support work authorization for this role. Candidates must be authorized to work in the U.S. without the need for current or future sponsorship. We're defining missions before they're missions. As a Mission Formulation Engineer, you'll work at the front end of the lifecycle, where requirements are still open and the architecture is still a question. You'll translate ambiguous customer needs into credible mission concepts, lead trade studies across competing architectures, size mission designs and resource budgets, shape concepts of operations, and build the quick-turn analysis that lets us down-select with confidence. This is breadth-first systems engineering: you'll reason across propulsion, GNC, comms, and operations well enough to know what closes and what doesn't, and comfortable working before the answers are fixed. You bring the judgment to navigate undefined problems. We bring the missions that need defining. Together, we decide what flies.

Requirements

B.S./M.S./Ph.D. in Engineering or a related field, with emphasis on systems engineering or mission concept design, or deep knowledge of a specific mission critical subsystem engineering field.
8 to 12 years of experience in mission formulation, concept development, and early-phase systems engineering, with deep-space or cislunar experience preferred
Demonstrated ability to lead architecture trade studies and translate mission objectives into requirements and ConOps
Strong mission design and astrodynamics literacy across Earth, cislunar, and deep-space regimes
Systems-level breadth across propulsion, GNC, communications, and operations, sufficient to judge concept feasibility and resource closure
Familiarity with NASA's Systems Engineering Handbook and early-lifecycle (pre-Phase A and Phase A) processes; DoD space program experience a plus
Programming proficiency for analysis and trade tooling, Python preferred
Experience supporting technical proposals and customer-facing concept development
Thrives amid evolving and ambiguous technical needs: adaptable, decisive, and dependable
Strong communicator and leader, able to mentor, delegate, and drive cross-functional teams
Customer-focused, technically sharp, and forward-looking
Ability to work in the Westminster, CO office 5 days/week during core business hours.
Applicants must be a US Person (citizen or Green Card Holder/permanent resident, or protected individual)

Nice To Haves

deep-space or cislunar experience preferred
DoD space program experience a plus

Responsibilities

Lead early-phase mission studies and concept development for new and upcoming missions, from initial objectives through concept maturation and down-select
Translate customer mission objectives into mission concepts, top-level system requirements, and concepts of operations (ConOps)
Define and lead trade studies across competing mission architectures, weighing feasibility, performance, cost, and risk to drive down-select decisions
Develop and balance system-level resource budgets (delta-v, mass, power, link, data) and validate candidate concepts against mission performance requirements
Own concept-level mission design, including orbit and trajectory selection, maneuver, and coverage analysis, in coordination with astrodynamics and navigation teams
Work directly with customers to shape and mature mission concepts, present technical options, and guide the transition from concept to a baselined design
Lead or handoff leadership for early system reviews (MCR, SRR, SDR) and provide technical guidance to subsystem concept development (GNC, ADCS, comms, propulsion, EPS, etc.)
Proactively identify and manage technical, maturity (TRL), and feasibility risks across the formulation phase
Assess concept viability against regulatory and operational constraints, including orbital debris, spectrum, and operability considerations
Coordinate a broad range of technical experts, spanning astrodynamics, GNC, navigation, communications, and systems engineering, to close concepts as integrated wholes
Lead the development of compelling, technically rigorous proposals for future missions