Senior Spacecraft Mission Software Engineer
About The Position
About Varda Low Earth orbit is open for business. Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure, from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules. From life-saving pharmaceuticals to more powerful fiber optics, there is a world of products used on Earth today that can only be manufactured in space. Varda is accelerating innovation in the orbital economy by creating both the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth. Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind. Our team is uniquely suited to accomplishing this goal, with leadership and staff comprised of veterans from SpaceX, Blue Origin, major pharmaceutical companies and Silicon Valley. Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with significant backing from world class investors including Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, Caffeinated Capital, General Catalyst, and Also Capital. Varda is headquartered in El Segundo, California, where we have offices and a production facility where our vehicles, equipment, and materials are built, integrated, and tested. Varda also has offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, AL. Join Varda, and work to create a bustling in-space ecosystem. What You Will Do (Job Responsibilities) The Mission Software team is responsible for Varda's critical ground segment software, and the platform it runs on which enables spacecraft operations. We operate at the intersection of telemetry and commanding, data acquisition and distribution, mission control interfaces, simulation and test automation, with reliable deployment across lab, test range, and mission operations environments. You'll work hands-on with flight software, avionics, RF/ground systems, and mission ops.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, math, physics, engineering or equivalent technical experience in safety critical software.
- 5+ years of experience in the development of spacecraft or similar safety critical software.
- Expertise with development in Python, along with a strong understanding of the language concepts.
- Have strong systems fundamentals: concurrency, networking, performance, reliability.
- Experience building real-time data acquisition, scaling, and distribution services - low-latency messaging, time-series and relational stores.
- Hands-on experience with CI/CD, dependency/build systems, and infrastructure-as-code.
- End-to-end observability experience: logging, metrics, tracing.
- Docker/Kubernetes; release management, phased rollouts, and operational readiness for controlled networks.
Nice To Haves
- Proficiency in C++, Ansible, and/or NiceGUI.
- Experience with DAQ and closed-loop control (lab/test control environments).
- Prior work on CI/testing/simulation/data tools integrated with flight software teams.
- Experience with requirements, test, and certification artifacts from safety-critical or certified workflows.
- Knowledge of ground systems standards; security in mission networks.
- Experience building mission-grade UIs with structured command workflows, alarming, and situational awareness.
Responsibilities
- Own Ground Segment Services: Develop and maintain high-reliability services for telemetry ingestion, scaling, distribution, and commanding. Ensure deterministic behavior for real-time operations and post-flight analysis.
- Mission Control Interfaces: Deliver operator-grade UIs and dashboards that optimize "ops time" and reduce cognitive load across integration, test, and on-orbit operations phases.
- Simulation and Test Automation: Build tools to run flight-software simulations, device emulators, and scenario-based automated tests - enabling fast, safe iteration for avionics, GNC, and operations teams.
- Build the Mission Platform: Design, implement, and productionize software for mission and ground software teams. Standardize CI/CD pipelines, artifact management, service templates, infrastructure-as-code, simulation and hardware-in-the-loop frameworks, test harnesses, and observability - all delivered as self-service tooling.
- Deployments Across Environments: Create robust deployment patterns for lab benches, test stands, and mission networks. Implement safe rollout/rollback strategies and air-gapped or limited-connectivity deployment approaches.
Benefits
- Flexible PTO policy + 12 paid holidays
- 100% company-paid Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance plans for employees and dependents with FSA and employer-matched HSA options
- Voluntary accident, hospital, critical illness, and pet insurance
- $120/month wellness reimbursement for gym and fitness expenses
- 12 weeks of parental leave (with supplemental disability leave for CA mothers)
- Family building, pregnancy, parenting and menopause benefits via Maven Clinic
- Sponsored One Medical memberships for employees and their dependents
- Substantial incentive equity in a fully funded space start-up
- 401(k) retirement plan with 6% employer match (immediately vested)
- $20/pay period cell phone reimbursement
- Relocation support for new hires, if needed
- Fully stocked kitchen with lunch provided daily and dinner provided twice weekly
- Company and team-bonding events, happy hours and mission-success celebrations
- Complimentary EV charging
- Dog-friendly office space đ
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
Education Level
Associate degree
