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Salary: USD 169,067 - 216,031 / annual
Varda Space Industries is building commercial space infrastructure, including in-orbit pharmaceutical processing systems, reentry capsules, and satellite buses. The company designs and operates all major components in-house, from heat shields to processing payloads.
As a Senior Embedded Software Engineer on the Flight Software team, you will own the firmware that controls how Varda's spacecraft, satellite bus, and reentry capsule operate throughout their entire mission lifecycle. This is a full-stack embedded systems role spanning requirements capture, design, implementation, testing, integration, and flight operations support.
Key responsibilities include:
- Developing reliable, safety-critical firmware for spacecraft control systems
- Owning all phases of software development from design through V&V (verification and validation)
- Scoping projects, capturing requirements, and making design trade-offs for open-ended problems
- Writing structured bare-metal, RTOS, or Linux-based software in C++ for embedded processors
- Building highly reliable and available systems with rigorous testing and validation
- Ensuring system quality and performance through comprehensive test strategies
You'll need a bachelor's degree in computer science, math, physics, or engineering (or equivalent safety-critical software experience), plus 5+ years developing spacecraft or similar safety-critical systems. Strong experience with real-time embedded hardware/software systems and C++ is required. Preferred qualifications include aerospace safety-critical software experience, Python or Rust proficiency, and deep knowledge of computer architecture, operating systems, data structures, and networking.
Varda was founded in 2021 by veterans from SpaceX and Blue Origin, backed by top-tier investors including Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, and Founders Fund. The team is headquartered in El Segundo with additional offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, AL.
