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Salary: USD 165,000 - 210,000 / annual
Cowboy Space Corp. is building orbital infrastructure to power and connect the space economy. Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt (Robinhood co-founder) and backed by leading investors, the company operates satellites in Low Earth Orbit to collect solar energy and enable new capabilities—from powering on-orbit compute to transmitting energy via infrared lasers and delivering secure, high-bandwidth optical data.
As Senior Turbopump Engineer, you will own turbopump hardware design and development across the full lifecycle: from architecture trades and detailed design through fabrication, hot fire testing, and flight operations. The turbopump is the heart of the engine and sets its performance ceiling. You will own the mechanical design of all turbopump components—inducers, impellers, diffusers, volutes, turbine stages, dynamic seals, bearing supports, pump housings, and assemblies—and carry accountability from concept through flight.
Key responsibilities include leading architecture trades on pump and turbine configurations (shaft speed, stage count, specific speed, bearing and seal arrangement); integrating hydro, aero, structures, rotordynamics, secondary flow, thermal, and bearing constraints into a unified design definition; performing and directing analysis (hand calculations, FEA, rotordynamic models, secondary flow, axial thrust balance, life prediction); owning the verification argument and deciding what closes by analysis versus on the stand; selecting materials and manufacturing processes for cryogenic, high-speed, high-stress service; generating detailed drawings, design definitions, and interface control documents; driving hardware through fabrication with vendor engagement and nonconformance disposition; defining and executing test campaigns; leading root cause investigations on anomalies; controlling configuration and pedigree across build, test, and refurbishment; and reviewing design work of junior engineers to raise team standards.
Required qualifications: Bachelor's degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, or related engineering; strong grounding in turbomachinery fundamentals (hydrodynamic and aerodynamic performance, rotordynamics, secondary flow, structural life); proficiency in 3D CAD and producing released, manufacturable design definitions with sound GD&T and tolerance stack-ups; experience with structural and thermal analysis (FEA and hand calculations validated against test); experience selecting materials and manufacturing processes for high-stress, high-cycle applications; hands-on experience taking hardware from design through build and test; U.S. citizenship or permanent residency required.
Preferred: 8+ years turbomachinery or turbopump experience; Master's or Ph.D. in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering; liquid rocket engine turbopump or reusable propulsion systems experience; clean-sheet to first hot fire experience; mentoring and design review experience; adjacent rotating machinery experience (gas turbines, industrial pumps, compressors, turbochargers); detailed design and analysis of fluid components, dynamic seals, and rotor support structures; rotordynamics and bearing selection expertise; cryogenic hardware design experience; root cause investigation leadership; additive manufacturing, castings, and forgings experience; fast-moving hardware startup or early-stage program experience.
