Principal Autonomous Orbit Determination Engineer

BLUE ORIGIN • Reston, VA

7d • $173,466 - $242,851

About The Position

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight! The role is part of the In-Space Systems business unit, which is focused on addressing two of the most compelling challenges in spaceflight today: space infrastructure and increasing mobility on-orbit. At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We're working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight! Lead the Next Generation of Deep Space Navigation Blue Origin's Blue National Security business unit is extending humanity's reach beyond Earth orbit. Blue Ring, our multi-mission space vehicle, is designed to operate across cislunar, heliocentric, and interplanetary regimes — including missions around the Moon and Mars that will serve as critical infrastructure for humanity's expansion into deep space. These missions demand navigation solutions that go far beyond traditional ground-in-the-loop paradigms, operating with increasing autonomy across multiple dynamically complex environments. As a Principal Autonomous Orbit Determination Engineer on the Astrodynamics and Trajectory eXecution (ATX) team, you will serve as the technical authority for developing autonomous onboard navigation capabilities that will define future deep space missions. While our vision is fully autonomous deep space navigation, near-term missions will rely on robust ground-based orbit determination. This role also requires subject matter expertise in ground-based statistical orbit determination using radiometric measurements, which you will apply to operational missions while simultaneously leading the development of autonomous navigation systems for the future. You will integrate optical and radiometric techniques into a coherent autonomous navigation architecture spanning ground and spacecraft, driving design from concept through flight and shaping the algorithms, software, and operational processes that define Blue Origin's deep space navigation philosophy. This is a must-have position for our lunar and Mars mission portfolio. You will set technical direction, mentor a growing team of navigation engineers, and directly enable mission success across Blue Origin's most ambitious deep space programs.

Requirements

• M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related fields.
• 10+ years of proven experience in spacecraft navigation, orbit determination, or related astrodynamics disciplines.
• Demonstrated experience developing and implementing orbit determination algorithms.
• Experience with optical navigation techniques (e.g., terrain-relative navigation, star-based navigation, landmark tracking).
• Experience with radiometric navigation techniques (Doppler, ranging, VLBI, or similar).
• Strong fundamentals in astrodynamics, orbital mechanics, and estimation theory.
• Applied experience in navigation tools such as Monte, STK/ODTK, FreeFlyer, or GMAT.
• Experience in at least one of the following: Python, Julia, or C++.
• Demonstrated ability to define navigation requirements.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to earn trust, maintain positive and professional relationships, and contribute to a culture of inclusion.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Nice To Haves

• Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related fields.
• Experience with cislunar or interplanetary mission navigation.
• Experience developing or deploying autonomous/onboard navigation systems in flight.
• Experience with optical navigation in deep space proximity operations.
• Experience with GNC algorithm development and flight software integration.
• Experience leading a navigation team through design, development, and operational deployment.
• Demonstrated knowledge of the mission design lifecycle from conceptualization through operational flight.
• Experience with DevOps processes including configuration control, continuous integration/deployment, Agile methodologies, and code review.
• Previous experience with software development tooling such as Jira, git, Jenkins, Docker, and at least one IDE.
• Willingness or ability to acquire Active Top Secret (TS) / Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) security clearance with Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) with polygraph preferred.

Responsibilities

• Shape the Autonomous Navigation Architecture: Define the end-to-end architecture for onboard autonomous orbit determination, integrating optical and radiometric measurement sources into a coherent, flight-ready navigation system for cislunar and interplanetary missions.
• Lead Deep Space Autonomous Navigation Development: Own the development and integration of optical and radiometric measurement processing into onboard algorithms for cislunar and interplanetary missions. Drive the technical roadmap from concept through flight implementation, defining the path toward fully autonomous deep space navigation.
• Roadmap the Path to Full Autonomy: Define the long-range strategy for onboard navigation capability maturation — particularly for deep space regimes with limited ground contact — and drive its implementation across the Blue Ring fleet.
• Support Ground Navigation Operations: Contribute to live ground-based orbit determination alongside the ATX team when operational missions require hands-on navigation support.
• Execute Ground-Based Navigation Processing: Apply your subject matter expertise in statistical orbit determination using radiometric and optical measurements to deliver navigation solutions for early lunar and Mars missions as Blue Origin's autonomous capabilities mature.
• Collaborate Across Disciplines: Interface with GNC, avionics, flight software, systems engineering, and flight operations teams to ensure onboard navigation algorithms are properly integrated and validated end-to-end.
• Mentor and Lead: Provide technical leadership and mentorship to navigation engineers; establish best practices for algorithm development, testing, and verification.
• Deliver Excellence: Present results and support critical design reviews using Agile development methodologies.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability, 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%, and an Education Support Program.
• Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
• Paid Time Off: Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal