Principal/Sr. Principal Simulation Software Engineer

Northrop Grumman•Sterling, VA

About The Position

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history. At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history. We have an opening for a Principal/Sr. Principal Simulation Software Engineer to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals in the Tactical Space Systems organization developing space vehicle hardware-in-the-loop simulation platforms for large and small space programs. These high-fidelity test platforms provide a hardware/software facsimile of space vehicle component interfaces to flight processors for flight software and mission development and qualification. The candidate will be part of a small design team supporting various programs such as National Security Space systems, NASA space science missions, and communication satellites. This position will be located in Dulles, VA and requires a TS/SCI clearance. This position can be hired as a Principal Engineer (level 3) or an Sr. Principal Engineer (level 4) depending on experience.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree and 5 years experience, Master's degree and 3 years experience, OR Ph.D in Electrical/Computer Engineering or related field (Level 3)
Bachelor's degree and 8 years experience, Master's degree and 6 years experience, OR Ph.D and 4 years of experience in Electrical/Computer Engineering or related field (Level 4)
Diverse programming experience: C/C++, Python, Windows/Linux scripting
Excellent communication skills and ability to work in small teams
Understanding of waterfall, spiral and/or Agile software development processes and continuous integration
Ability to use software revision control tools such as Subversion and Git
Ability to clearly document technical and programmatic status to management
Current TS/SCI clearance
US Citizenship required

Nice To Haves

System knowledge in one or more of the following domains: Spacecraft Command & Control, Mission Planning, Space Situational Awareness and Visualization
Understanding of Jenkins, Jira (Agile, Scrum and Kanban), Bitbucket and related DevSecOps tools
Hardware interfacing, integration and test and controls experience
Understanding of common embedded system tools, real-time operating systems and avionics integration and test practices
Excellent communication, interpersonal skills, and the ability to interface with all levels of employees and management
Experience with or awareness of earned value management
Experience working closely with and/or leading cross departmental teams
Experience with closed loop simulations
Advanced proficiency in software development using C/C++, Python, Windows/Linux scripting
Experience developing software in a Linux OS environment
Experience with National Instruments data acquisition cards and National Instruments proprietary software
Experience with Digital, Analog, RS-422 synchronous serial and UART, MIL-STD-1553, SpaceWire electrical interfaces

Responsibilities

Establish simulation requirements for hardware in the loop platforms.
Select off-the-shelf or design interface hardware to simulate space vehicle components (actuators, sensors, and payloads).
Develop simulation software models and software interfaces to simulation hardware cards, including digital, analog, serial, and SpaceWire.
Define simulation testbed harnessing based on the space vehicle flight harness and simulation requirements.
Interface with hardware engineers in the design, build, and test of the simulation platforms.
Implement software control of simulation platform test equipment.
Develop and execute simulation certification loop back testing.
Work with program engineers to integrate components and flight software with the simulation platform.
Use common lab equipment (oscilloscopes, break out boxes, multimeters, interface analyzers) for debug and problem resolution.
Prepare design documentation, analysis, test results and presentation materials for internal and external customers.
Work in an innovative environment across diverse assignments and in collaborative team settings across all levels.