Spacecraft Flight Computing Senior Engineer

The Exploration Company • Los Angeles, CA

13d • $125,000 - $165,000

About The Position

The Exploration Company is developing, producing, and operating Nyx, a modular and reusable space orbital vehicle. This role is for a highly skilled Spacecraft Flight Computing Engineer with expertise in real-time, fault-tolerant computer systems running a RTOS and/or Linux. The focus is on hands-on hardware and software development, emphasizing systems resilient to radiation effects in space. The engineer will also apply knowledge of IP networking, including Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP), for deterministic, synchronized communication across spacecraft subsystems.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Strong proficiency in C/C++ and Python for embedded software development and automation.
• Hands-on experience with real-time systems and Linux-based embedded computing.
• Practical expertise in fault-tolerant computing methods (redundancy, checkpoint/restart, graceful degradation).
• Knowledge of IP networking protocols (TCP/IP, UDP, routing, switching) with direct experience implementing TSN and PTP in real-time or mission-critical environments.
• Understanding of radiation effects on electronics and software, with experience implementing mitigation strategies at multiple system levels.
• Experience with system-level debugging tools and hardware/software integration.
• Applicants must be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents (green card holders) due to federal regulations (e.g., ITAR/EAR).

Nice To Haves

• Strong skills in writing, debugging and performance tuning low-level software for Linux and/or a RTOS, including the bootloader and device drivers.
• Strong skills in hardware design using Altium Designer and/or Cadence Allegro for schematics and PCB layout.
• Experience with multi-gigabit SERDES interfaces like SGMII, PCI Express and Serial RapidIO.
• Solid background in FPGA development (VHDL/Verilog, synthesis, simulation, timing closure, hardware validation).
• Familiarity with modern multi-core ARM-based System-on-Chip hardware, including the internal architecture.
• Experience writing bare-metal code.
• Exposure to radiation testing (heavy-ion, proton, or TID) and analysis.
• Background in hardware-software co-design for reliability and fault-tolerance.
• Prior hands-on experience supporting space missions.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain real-time embedded computing systems for spacecraft avionics.
• Apply fault-tolerant computing techniques to ensure reliable operation in the presence of radiation-induced upsets and anomalies.
• Develop and optimize RTOS and Linux-based real-time operating environments, including kernel configuration, bootloader, device drivers, and system-level performance tuning.
• Perform hardware design tasks, including schematic capture, PCB layout, and component selection using Altium Designer, with emphasis on radiation-tolerant design practices.
• Develop, synthesize, and validate FPGA designs (VHDL/Verilog), incorporating mitigation strategies such as TMR, ECC, and scrubbing.
• Design, configure, and troubleshoot IP networking protocols, with focus on TSN for deterministic networking and PTP for precise time synchronization across spacecraft systems.
• Conduct system integration, hardware/software debugging, and fault injection testing to verify robustness under radiation and fault conditions.
• Collaborate closely with flight software, avionics, and systems engineering teams to define computing, networking, and interface requirements.
• Support mission operations through anomaly resolution and post-flight analysis of radiation-induced effects such as SEUs and TID.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation
• Comprehensive benefits
• Opportunities for technical growth
• Relocation assistance is provided for those willing to relocate including visa sponsorship where applicable.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior