Senior Thermal Analysis Engineer

Varda Space Industries • El Segundo, CA

12d • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Thermal Analysis Engineer serves as a key member of the vehicle engineering team. You will develop and maintain thermal system architectures and collaborate cross-functionally with hardware, production, software, and mission ops teams to ensure vehicle health and performance through all mission phases. Your work will directly influence the design and performance of Varda’s spacecraft from concept and test to validation. You will often flex between quick evaluations and high-fidelity analysis to assess vehicle impact and risk. You will also contribute to thermal data processing and documentation workflows to ensure a robust system as we scale in vehicle cadence. A proactive problem-solving approach and commitment to meeting tight schedules are critical to supporting Varda's goals of expanding manufacturing capabilities and reentry systems.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related discipline with a minimum of 5+ years of related professional experience, or a Master's degree in a related engineering discipline and 3+ years of related professional experience.
• Experience and knowledge in developing passive and active thermal control systems.
• Proficiency in detailed thermal analysis and troubleshooting in programs such as Thermal Desktop, SINDA/FLUINT, ANSYS, MSC Nastran.
• Experience anchoring thermal models to test and/or flight data.
• Experience in planning and executing Thermal Vacuum Chamber (TVac) testing.
• Experience in MATLAB (or equivalent) for data processing and task automation.
• Ability to structure open ended problems and perform system balance sizing with hand calcs or simplified simulations.
• Experience in 0D and 1D thermal and/or fluid networks.
• Familiarity with thermal margins and qualification test requirements in SMC-S-016
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with an aptitude for interdisciplinary technical communication (structures, avionics, software, production, GNC, etc.)
• Experience in project management/leadership for a multidisciplinary design or test campaign
• Ability to successfully respond to evolving requirements in a fast-moving organization

Nice To Haves

• 7-10+ years of related professional work experience
• Experience of an entire spacecraft vehicle lifecycle, from initial concept, design development, production, integration, and test to mission operations.
• Experience in thermal design and analysis of reentry systems
• A track record of taking ownership of projects and delivering results in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain integrated thermal analysis models for Varda’s space vehicles.
• Work collaboratively with other spacecraft disciplines to define thermal hardware requirements and iterate on designs based on simulation results
• Publish flight predictions and provide actionable guidance larger engineering team
• Ensure spacecraft remains within operating and survival limits during all mission phases via passive and active thermal control. Seek solutions that provide operational simplicity and system robustness.
• Create and maintain tools/systems for thermal simulation and flight data processing
• Plan and execute Thermal Vacuum (TVac) testing
• Anchor thermal models to vehicle level Thermal Vacuum (TVac) testing and/or flight data to improve model fidelity.
• Provide guidance to vehicle level testing, such as thermal bakeout, Vehicle-In-The-Loop (VITL), propulsion hot fire, etc.
• Work independently with minimal technical oversight
• Work open ended problems to inform technical decisions, balancing efficiency and fidelity.
• Mentor junior engineers and serve as a technical peer reviewer.

Benefits

• Exciting team of professionals at the top of their field working by your side
• Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth (interns excluded)
• 401(k) matching (interns excluded)
• Unlimited PTO (interns excluded)
• Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
• Lunch and snacks provided on site every day.
• Dinners provided twice a week.
• Maternity / Paternity leave (interns excluded)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Number of Employees: 51-100 employees