Senior Mechanisms Engineer - Satellite Mechanisms
About The Position
As a Mechanisms Engineer, you will own a critical spacecraft mechanism subsystem from concept through flight. Depending on your background and team priorities, your assignment will be hold-down and release mechanisms (HDRMs), solar array deployment and drive systems, deployable structures (antennas, booms, radiators), or thermal/radiator articulation mechanisms. This is a hands-on role at the center of spacecraft hardware development. You will work closely with structures, thermal, power, avionics, and mission operations to design integrated systems, build hardware, and validate through test. You'll be expected to move quickly, iterate often, and take full ownership of mechanisms that directly impact mission success.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field.
- 5+ years of experience designing mechanisms or mechanical systems for spacecraft, launch vehicles, or high-performance hardware.
- Experience taking hardware from concept through build, integration, and test.
- Strong fundamentals in structural mechanics, kinematics, materials, and manufacturing processes.
- Proficiency with CAD (NX, SolidWorks, CATIA, or Creo) and creating engineering drawings to ASME Y14.5 GD&T standards.
- Proficiency with FEA tools (ANSYS, Nastran, or Abaqus) for mechanism load-path and dynamic problems.
- 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
- 10+ years of experience designing mechanisms or mechanical systems for spacecraft or high-performance flight hardware.
- Direct experience with hold-down and release mechanisms (HDRMs), solar array deployment systems, or other spacecraft deployables.
- Experience with pyrotechnic, non-explosive actuator (NEA), or other low-shock release devices.
- Hands-on prototyping and machining experience.
- Familiarity with spacecraft thermal environments and their effect on mechanism performance.
- Experience at a fast-moving, hardware-focused startup or early-stage spacecraft program.
Responsibilities
- Own your mechanism subsystem from concept through design, analysis, test, and flight.
- Drive structural and kinematic design for minimum mass while meeting strength, stiffness, fatigue, and operational-life requirements across launch, on-orbit deployment, and mission-life environments.
- Balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule in every design decision.
- Perform analysis — hand calculations, FEA, tolerance stack-ups, deployment dynamics — and validate predictions with test and on-orbit data.
- Define and execute qualification and acceptance test campaigns, including vibration, thermal vacuum, deployment, and life testing; author procedures, acceptance criteria, and anomaly dispositions.
- Develop and maintain engineering drawings, models, and release documentation.
- Work directly on the factory floor with manufacturing and integration & test teams to iterate quickly and resolve build issues in real time.
- Troubleshoot hardware anomalies, perform root cause analysis, and implement design improvements.
- Support spacecraft integration & test, launch site operations, and on-orbit commissioning/anomaly response.
Benefits
- Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.
- Medical insurance
- Dental insurance
- Vision insurance
- 401(k) retirement savings plan
- Paid time off
- 10 paid holidays per calendar year
- Paid parental leave
- Relocation assistance
- Daily lunch in the office
- Fully stocked kitchen with beverages and snacks
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
