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Rocket Lab is seeking a Principal Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) Engineer to lead GNC and ADCS development for its growing fleet of diverse spacecraft. Based in Long Beach, CA, this role is central to the Space Systems team, which has enabled over 1,700 missions including interplanetary exploration, in-space manufacturing, and national security initiatives.
You will mentor a team responsible for GNC design, modeling, and analysis across diverse mission profiles: LEO, MEO, GEO, Lunar, Interplanetary, Reentry, and Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPOD). Your responsibilities span the full engineering lifecycle: spacecraft concept and algorithm development, flight software implementation, subsystem requirements, detailed GNC design, integration and test, and vehicle-level I&T. You will design flight software, algorithms, and simulation products; develop spacecraft autonomy tools for constellation management; select GNC components; and define fault detection and response strategies.
Key activities include hardware-in-the-loop and Monte Carlo simulation, integration of flight and simulation software with modern analysis and operations tools, support for design reviews, and coordination with department leads and program managers on schedule and milestones. You will work closely with Systems, Avionics, Flight Software, Mission Operations, and Ground Software teams, as well as directly with customers to ensure mission success. The role involves coordination across Rocket Lab's global offices in Denver, Colorado and New Zealand.
Required qualifications: B.S. degree and 12+ years of industry experience in GNC/ADCS; active Secret clearance with ability to obtain TS/SCI; prior experience interfacing with aerospace customers in commercial or government sectors; U.S. citizenship. Nice-to-have qualifications include MS/PhD, 2+ years RPOD experience, active TS/SCI clearance, hands-on GNC hardware experience (IMU, reaction wheels, star trackers), flight software development and verification, on-orbit operations experience, and prior team leadership across project lifecycles.
