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Salary: USD 170,000 - 202,000 / annual
Cowboy Space Corporation is building space-based solar energy infrastructure using modular, scalable satellites in Low Earth Orbit. The company transmits energy via infrared lasers, powers on-orbit computing clusters, and provides secure optical data transport. Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt (co-founder of Robinhood), the company has raised ~$365M from top-tier investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, and Breakthrough Energy Ventures. The team includes veterans from SpaceX, Blue Origin, Stoke Space, Astranis, and NASA.
In this hands-on technical leadership role, you will own the navigation sensor suite across launch vehicles and spacecraft. You will select, characterize, calibrate, qualify, and integrate inertial sensors and GNSS hardware, identifying opportunities to share components across platforms. This is a senior individual contributor role with significant technical scope and responsibility for sensor hardware performance and verification.
Key responsibilities include:
- Define navigation sensor hardware requirements with vehicle and GNC engineers; select sensor suites for each application
- Evaluate supplier accelerometers, gyroscopes, IMUs, and GNSS receivers against performance, environmental, interface, cost, and availability requirements
- Identify shared components and interfaces across launch vehicles and spacecraft, documenting where different operating environments require different hardware or qualification approaches
- Own electrical and mechanical integration of the sensor suite with avionics and vehicle teams
- Coordinate GNSS antenna, RF compatibility, and interference requirements with RF systems engineers
- Develop characterization and calibration methods for inertial sensors; quantify error sources and environmental sensitivities; provide calibration data and performance models to navigation software teams
- Plan and lead component and assembly acceptance and qualification testing (thermal cycling, thermal vacuum, vibration, shock, EMI/EMC, radiation); document results and close verification requirements
- Lead sensor hardware failure analysis; work with suppliers to resolve defects and performance issues; implement hardware or calibration-software improvements
- Establish repeatable calibration and acceptance processes with manufacturing and test teams; track hardware readiness for vehicle integration; coordinate regulatory or certification evidence
Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, or related field
- 8+ years of related experience in navigation sensor hardware or avionics assembly design and integration, including responsibility for hardware performance and verification
- Understanding of IMU error sources, environmental sensitivities, calibration methods, and mitigation techniques
- Experience integrating accelerometers, gyroscopes, or IMUs into flight or other high-reliability systems, including electrical interfaces and mechanical mounting
- Hands-on experience developing test setups, analyzing sensor data, and characterizing or qualifying hardware against defined requirements
- Understanding of design for manufacturing; ability to work independently, document technical decisions, and coordinate delivery with suppliers and engineering teams
- Experience with Analog to Digital Converters, Digital to Analog Converters, and Data Acquisition systems
- Experience with a variety of sensors (proximity, pressure, temperature, strain gages) and encoder selection
Preferred:
- Master's degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, or related field
- Experience integrating GNSS receivers and working with navigation software or GNC teams
- Experience qualifying sensor hardware for both launch-vehicle and spacecraft environments, or reusing components across platforms
- Experience developing custom inertial sensor assemblies (navigation-grade IMU triads) or supporting accelerometer and gyroscope development
- Experience improving calibration, acceptance-test coverage, manufacturing yield, or production throughput for sensor hardware
Note: ITAR compliance required—applicants must be U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, or eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
