Senior Space Guidance, Navigation, and Controls (GNC) Engineer

Varda Space Industries•El Segundo, CA

21h•$169,067 - $216,031•Onsite

About The Position

As a Senior Space Guidance, Navigation, and Controls (GNC) Engineer, you will own the full life cycle of GNC development at Varda, from design through unit, hardware-in-the-loop, on-vehicle functionality, and flight testing. You will perform system analyses, including simulations and Monte Carlo analysis, to satisfy specifications and requirements and inform system-level architectural and business decisions. You will contribute to Varda’s in-house, multi-degree-of-freedom aerospace simulation and test framework and develop and maintain design descriptions and supporting documentation. The role covers end-to-end execution of the GNC subsystem, from initial analysis and design through vehicle integration, mission planning, flight, and support of on-orbit and reentry mission operations. The role is on-site in El Segundo, California. The salary range is $169,067–$216,031 per year. Leveling and base salary are determined by job-related skills, education, experience, and performance. The position is eligible for long-term incentives in the form of stock options and/or long-term cash awards. Because employees have access to export-controlled items, Varda’s policy is to hire only U.S. persons permitted to access its technology without an export license.

Requirements

B.S. degree in aerospace, mechanical, or electrical engineering, physics, or a related field.
At least 5 years of proven experience, or a Ph.D. with at least 3 years of relevant experience.
Demonstrated knowledge of designing, modeling, testing, and flying aerospace guidance, navigation, and control systems.
Highly developed software and model development skills, particularly in C++ and Python.
Understanding of orbital mechanics, modeling and simulation, and software development.
Experience anchoring or fitting first-principles models to test data or high-fidelity external simulations.
Proven systems engineering and configuration management skills.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in engineering or physics.
Experience with spacecraft attitude determination and control system design.
Experience with GMAT, POST2, or similar tools.
Understanding of multi-body dynamics, flexible body dynamics, gas dynamics, fluids, and thermodynamics.
Experience developing and verifying physical models for control design, component sizing, and system performance evaluation.
Experience supporting safety-critical flight tests or spacecraft.
Ability to continuously manage risk and provide solutions using lean, state-of-the-art software development techniques.

Responsibilities

Specify ADCS hardware performance, including sizing reaction wheels, torque rods, IMU/GPS, and star trackers.
Design and implement autonomous satellite attitude control, collision avoidance, orbital rendezvous, burn planning, and atmospheric reentry algorithms.
Perform trajectory design, optimization, and dispersion analysis for space capsule reentry.
Develop six-degree-of-freedom vehicle simulations using C++, Python, and MATLAB/Simulink.
Run Monte Carlo analyses to characterize performance of new vehicle and mission capabilities.
Integrate and test GNC sensors, actuators, and software in a hardware-in-the-loop environment.
Design and implement ground tooling to facilitate fully automated maneuver responsibility and maneuver scheduling decisions.
Monitor on-orbit system performance and troubleshoot where necessary.
Coordinate with other spacecraft operators, third-party agencies, and the U.S. government.
Support GNC execution from initial analysis and design through vehicle integration, mission planning, flight, and on-orbit and reentry mission operations.
Contribute to Varda’s in-house aerospace simulation and test framework and develop and maintain design descriptions and supporting documentation.