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Salary: USD 140,000 - 215,000 / annual
True Anomaly is seeking a Senior Spacecraft Simulation Software Engineer to drive the development and enhancement of spacecraft, constellation modeling, and simulation software with a focus on multi-physics, high-fidelity simulation. You will take ownership of significant technical components within the simulation infrastructure, working independently to design, implement, and deliver complex features in a fast-paced, interdisciplinary team.
You will develop algorithms for modeling coupled physics including 6-degree-of-freedom (6DOF) rigid body dynamics, thermal systems, attitude dynamics and control, power systems, propulsion, and their interactions. You will also mentor junior engineers and contribute to architectural decisions that shape the future of simulation capabilities.
Key responsibilities include:
**Simulation Development:** Design and implement multi-physics simulation software across spacecraft subsystems including 6DOF rigid body dynamics (gravity gradient, solar radiation pressure, atmospheric drag, magnetic torques, third-body effects), thermal modeling, attitude dynamics and control, propulsion (chemical/electric), power generation and storage, and high-fidelity sensor/actuator models (reaction wheels, CMGs, star trackers, gyros, magnetometers). Develop coupled physics algorithms capturing subsystem interactions (thermal-structural, power-thermal, propulsion-dynamics). Design time-stepping algorithms, solver architectures, and integration schemes for real-time and faster-than-real-time simulation. Write production-quality C++ with emphasis on performance, maintainability, and testability.
**API Design & Integration:** Design and maintain robust APIs in C++ and Python serving internal customers across the organization. Collaborate with mission planning, GNC, and systems engineering teams to ensure APIs are usable, performant, and backward-compatible. Create comprehensive documentation, examples, and user guides.
**Leadership & Collaboration:** Drive architectural decisions for simulation subsystems, including technology selection, interface design, and long-term maintainability tradeoffs; conduct thorough code reviews. Mentor junior engineers through pair programming and technical guidance. Contribute to sprint planning, estimation, and technical risk assessment. Participate in hiring through technical interviews and candidate assessment.
True Anomaly delivers decisive capabilities for space superiority, building autonomous spacecraft, advanced payloads, mission software, and space-based interceptors to enable the U.S. and its Allies to secure the space environment and counter threats.
**REQUIREMENTS:**
- Education: Bachelor's in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, physics, applied mathematics, or equivalent experience
- Experience: 5–8 years of professional software development with significant focus on simulation, scientific computing, or aerospace applications
- C++: Proficiency in modern C++ (C++17 or newer), including STL, templates, and performance optimization
- Python: Proficiency in API design, scripting, and data analysis
- Independence: Demonstrated ability to take ambiguous requirements and drive a complex technical effort to delivered capability with minimal direction
- Domain knowledge: Solid understanding of at least one of: ADCS, GNC, thermal control, electric power systems, chemical/electric propulsion, orbital mechanics, or HIL/SIL systems
- V&V: Demonstrated experience defining and executing verification and validation plans for physics-based models, including uncertainty quantification and validation against test or flight data
- Systems thinking: Ability to make sound design decisions within larger distributed systems
- Communication: Strong written and verbal skills; able to articulate complex technical concepts clearly
- Clearance: U.S. Citizen eligible for DoD Secret or TS/SCI clearance
**PREFERRED SKILLS:**
- Physics-based M&S experience in aerospace or defense
- Numerical methods: ODE/DAE solvers (Runge-Kutta, implicit, multi-step), numerical linear algebra, sparse matrix techniques, automatic differentiation
- Deep familiarity with coordinate frames (ECI, ECEF, LVLH, body frames), quaternion mathematics, and orbital mechanics
- Proficiency with Git, CI/CD, CMake or Bazel, and software testing frameworks
- Familiarity with parallel computing, Docker, and cloud platforms
- Experience with hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) or software-in-the-loop (SIL) testing environments, including simulation interfaces to flight software or embedded hardware
