Senior Software Engineer

Peraton•Washington, DC

About The Position

The Office of Space Weather Observations (SWO) under NESDIS is responsible for advancing space weather observational capabilities to meet NOAA programmatic needs. NOAA’s Space Weather Next (SWX) program maintains and extends space weather observations from various vantage points, selected to most e\efficiently provide comprehensive knowledge of the Sun and the near-Earth space environment needed to protect our technological infrastructure. The Space Weather Ground Services (SWGS) is responsible for comprehensive ground services for all SWX projects, ensuring successful implementation and operation of observing assets and ensuring the continuity of space weather measurements made by SWFO-L1 and the GOES-R series satellites. The SWGS Mission Operations Services (MOS) program must provide a full mission satellite command and control solution to support the L1 Series with two new independently launched observatories. Position Overview We are seeking a Lead Software Development Engineer to lead all software development activities for a newly awarded satellite ground system development program. This is a senior technical leadership role responsible for directing the design, development, integration, and delivery of mission-critical ground system software, including the integration of a Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) satellite command and control application into the overall system architecture. The selected candidate will serve as the software development authority for the program, ensuring that all development activities follow corporate engineering processes, industry standards, and software lifecycle best practices. This individual will lead a team of software engineers, assign and prioritize work, monitor progress, mitigate risks, and ensure that all software requirements are fully implemented and verified to meet program technical, schedule, and cost objectives. This role requires both strong technical depth and proven leadership in complex system integration environments, particularly within mission-critical or high-reliability systems. This position is contingent on contract award.

Requirements

Active Public Trust clearance (or ability to obtain/maintain).
BS/BA in Engineering, Computer Science, Information Systems, Mathematics, or related technical discipline with: 12+ years of relevant experience, OR MS with 10+ years of experience, OR PhD with 7+ years of experience.
4 years of additional experience may substitute in lieu of a degree.
Demonstrated experience leading software development teams on complex technical programs.
Strong understanding of the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), including requirements, design, implementation, integration, testing, and deployment.
Experience integrating complex systems or COTS software into larger enterprise or mission systems.
Experience developing software in one or more of the following: Java, C++, Python, PowerShell, Perl, Bash, Groovy, XML.
Experience with modern software development and DevSecOps practices.
Familiarity with common development tools including Git, Gradle, Ant, Jenkins, and CI/CD pipelines.
Experience working in Agile or hybrid Agile development environments.
Extensive experience working with Windows operating systems.
Experience with automated testing frameworks (e.g., JUnit or similar).
Experience with VHDL and development of Linux RHEL drivers.
Familiarity with the Atlassian tool suite, including JIRA and Confluence.
Strong communication, leadership, and organizational skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting satellite ground systems, mission operations systems, or space systems software.
Experience integrating or deploying COTS satellite command and control platforms.
Experience leading software development on large government or aerospace programs.
Experience with system integration, hardware/software interface development, or distributed systems.
Experience establishing or improving development processes on new programs.
Experience supporting program startup or early development phases.

Responsibilities

Lead all software development efforts supporting the design, development, integration, and sustainment of Satellite Ground Station Command and Control applications.
Serve as the technical lead for the software team, providing direction, oversight, and coordination across the full Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC).
Ensure software development processes are executed in accordance with corporate engineering standards, industry best practices, and program requirements.
Lead the integration of a COTS satellite ground system control application into the program’s overall system architecture.
Translate program and system-level requirements into detailed software implementation plans and development tasks.
Assign tasks, manage team workload, and monitor execution to ensure milestones and deliverables are met.
Track and communicate software development status, risks, and technical issues to program leadership.
Collaborate closely with systems engineering, integration and test, cybersecurity, and operations teams to ensure end-to-end system compatibility.
Guide architecture decisions, technical approaches, and design trade studies to resolve complex technical challenges.
Oversee development, debugging, testing, and documentation of software components written in Java, C++, Python, PowerShell, Perl, Groovy, Bash, XML, and related technologies.
Ensure automated testing strategies and continuous integration practices are implemented and maintained.
Support release planning, roadmap development, and level-of-effort estimation for program execution.
Drive Agile development practices and effective use of development tools such as JIRA and CI/CD pipelines.
Mentor and develop software engineers, fostering technical excellence and engineering discipline within the team.
Ensure compliance with program quality, cybersecurity, configuration management, and documentation requirements.