Thermal Engineer - Analysis & Test

Xona Space Systems•Burlingame, CA

2d•$132,000 - $178,000

About The Position

Xona is seeking a hands-on Thermal Engineer to support spacecraft thermal design and environmental verification. The role combines thermal analysis with ownership of thermal test development and execution. During the first year, work is expected to be approximately 50% thermal analysis and 50% testing, shifting over time toward greater ownership of component-, subsystem-, and spacecraft-level thermal analysis. The engineer will own work from early thermal modeling and collaboration with mechanical designers through thermal-vacuum (TVAC), thermal-chamber, and targeted R&D test campaigns. They will work with mechanical, electrical, systems, integration, manufacturing, and test teams to develop credible thermal models, produce test evidence, correlate models to data, and drive design improvements. The role also contributes analysis and test evidence to design reviews and flight qualification activities, and may involve coordination with vendors and external test laboratories.

Requirements

BS or MS in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.
Early-career to mid-career experience in thermal engineering, thermal analysis, environmental testing, or a closely related hardware discipline.
Strong understanding of heat transfer, including conduction, convection, radiation, transient thermal behavior, thermal interfaces, and material properties.
Experience creating, reviewing, or using thermal models for hardware, components, or integrated systems.
Experience supporting hands-on hardware testing in a laboratory, environmental-test, aerospace, or similarly rigorous hardware environment.
Ability to develop clear engineering documentation, including test procedures, analysis summaries, reports, and presentations.
Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and comfort working directly with hardware.
Ability to independently drive technical work, solve ambiguous problems, and collaborate effectively across disciplines.

Nice To Haves

Experience with spacecraft thermal-analysis tools such as Thermal Desktop/SINDA, ESATAN, or equivalent.
Direct experience supporting or leading TVAC, thermal-vacuum, thermal-cycling, or thermal-chamber tests.
Experience with thermocouples, RTDs, heaters, data-acquisition systems, vacuum-compatible hardware, and test instrumentation.
Experience correlating thermal models with environmental-test data.
Familiarity with spacecraft environmental-test standards and practices, such as GEVS, MIL-STD-1540, ECSS, or SMC-S-016.
Experience using Python, MATLAB, or similar tools for test-data reduction, analysis, or automation.
Experience working in a fast-paced aerospace, space, robotics, research, or high-reliability hardware environment.
Experience developing, troubleshooting, automating, or modifying thermal or TVAC chamber capabilities.

Responsibilities

Develop and maintain thermal models for components, assemblies, and spacecraft-level systems.
Perform steady-state and transient thermal analyses to assess operating temperatures, thermal margins, heater requirements, and environmental performance.
Collaborate with mechanical designers on thermal interfaces, materials, surface finishes, insulation, mounting strategies, and component placement.
Perform thermal design trades and communicate assumptions, risks, results, and recommendations to cross-functional teams.
Develop model inputs from hardware configuration, material properties, test data, and engineering judgment.
Correlate thermal models with test results and use findings to improve model fidelity and guide design decisions.
Develop and lead TVAC, thermal-chamber, thermal-cycling, and targeted R&D thermal test campaigns.
Define test objectives, success criteria, instrumentation plans, sensor locations, data requirements, and test configurations.
Write test plans, procedures, setup instructions, test reports, and verification documentation.
Prepare and configure test hardware, including sensors, heaters, harnessing, insulation, fixturing, and data-acquisition equipment.
Execute tests safely and efficiently, monitor data, troubleshoot anomalies, and lead post-test data review.
Support test readiness reviews, post-test inspections, functional testing, anomaly resolution, and configuration tracking.
Improve in-house thermal test infrastructure, procedures, automation, and data-analysis tools as needed.
Work with mechanical, electrical, systems, integration, manufacturing, and test engineers throughout hardware development.
Provide early thermal feedback to design teams to reduce downstream risk and rework.
Support thermal verification planning and contribute analysis and test evidence to design reviews and flight qualification activities.
Work with vendors and external test laboratories when specialized facilities or capabilities are required.
Incorporate lessons learned from analysis and testing into thermal design practices, test methods, and future spacecraft builds.