Thermal Systems Engineer V

JPL/NASA•Pasadena, CA

1d•$213,824 - $266,552•Onsite

About The Position

The Thermal Systems Engineer V will work in JPL’s Mechanical and Control Systems Division, in the Thermal, Propulsion, and Materials Engineering Section and as a member of the Payload Thermal and Cryogenic Systems Group. The group supports thermal and propulsion flight systems across design, analysis, fabrication, testing, integration, and operations. The role reports to the Group Supervisor. The engineer will serve as JPL systems engineer overseeing specification, implementation, and verification and validation of a flight-system or payload thermal control system. The position provides technical leadership throughout the development lifecycle, manages thermal risks and project resources, coordinates system interfaces and stakeholders, and represents the thermal system in project reviews and system-engineering meetings. The role requires working effectively in a dynamic, fast-paced environment, navigating ambiguity, and supporting frequent domestic travel.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering with a thermal or cryogenics focus, or a related technical discipline, and typically at least 12 years of related experience; alternatively, a master’s degree in a similar discipline and at least 10 years of experience; or a Ph.D. in a similar discipline and at least 8 years of experience.
Broad knowledge and experience in one or more of cryogenics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, thermal systems design, controls theory, or systems engineering.
Significant experience in spaceflight thermal subsystem or instrument engineering, particularly spacecraft thermal bus design and development.
Thermal hardware delivery experience.
Experience leading teams and coordinating project working groups in instrument, subsystem, or bus development, test, or operations at the systems level.
Experience developing and delivering system documentation such as requirements documents, test plans, interface agreements, and design description documents.
Experience working on external procurements.
Excellent problem-solving skills.
Ability to manage multiple issues, tasks, and priorities concurrently.
Experience in requirements and interface development, systems formulation, verification, and flight operations.
Excellent collaboration, negotiation, and communication skills.
Willingness to support frequent domestic travel.

Nice To Haves

Experience implementing a thermal control system with an external partner.
In-depth knowledge of translating spacecraft or instrument requirements into thermal requirements.
Experience designing and implementing cryogenic (sub-4K) flight hardware and operating cryogenic instruments.
Familiarity with cryogenic instrumentation.
Experience with thermal control of flight systems or space-based instruments.
Experience planning, preparing, and executing flight thermal balance tests.
Knowledge of JPL and NASA policies and procedures.
Experience developing flight-project and/or technology-development proposals.
Working knowledge of thermal environments for flight-system or instrument development.
Thermal software experience with Thermal Desktop and mechanical CAD software experience with Solidworks, AutoCAD, or NX.
Experience writing procedures, releasing drawings, and negotiating or implementing cross-domain interfaces involving manufacturing, structural analysis, electrical, fault-protection behaviors, flight rules, and outside vendors or collaborators.

Responsibilities

Oversee specification, implementation, verification, and validation of a flight-system or payload thermal control system, reporting programmatically to project payload and flight-system managers and administratively to the Thermal, Propulsion & Materials Engineering Section Manager.
Maintain awareness of the technical design, status, and issues of the thermal control system throughout development Phases A through D; ensure thermal products and processes meet JPL institutional standards and document non-compliances.
Plan, direct, and control financial and labor resources and schedules; make risk-management decisions and performance commitments in support of project objectives.
Manage flight-system or payload thermal risks.
Provide thermal technical leadership individually or as a member of a management team.
Oversee development of flight-system or payload thermal interfaces and coordinate stakeholders to support operable, reliable, and safe interactions between systems.
Present work in management and project reviews as required.
Represent the thermal system at system-engineering team meetings and lead or contribute to project-level design trades.