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Salary: USD 132,000 - 198,000 / annual
Rocket Lab is seeking a Senior Spacecraft Mechanical Engineer II to join the Space Systems division in Long Beach, CA. This role supports the design and development of cutting-edge spacecraft, mechanisms, and satellite bus configurations for civil, commercial, and defense customers, including NASA, the Space Development Agency, and the U.S. Space Force.
In this position, you will own the full lifecycle of mechanical component and system designs—from conceptual design through production, testing, and operational deployment. Key responsibilities include:
• Developing high-performance, lightweight satellite systems, mechanisms, and bus configurations tailored to customer requirements
• Conceptualizing and designing satellite configurations for science and interplanetary missions
• Defining modern satellite mechanism architectures and subsystem integration approaches
• Performing hand calculations and finite element analysis (FEA) to drive design decisions
• Leading component design reviews, manufacturing reviews, and test reviews
• Creating and maintaining product definitions through CAD modeling, production drawings, test procedures, and operations documentation
• Managing development schedules, vendor relationships, budgets, and project deliverables
• Supporting the Business Development team with proposals and mission concepts
• Working hands-on with flight hardware and driving technical development of Space Systems missions
The Space Systems team has enabled over 1,700 missions and has built spacecraft and payloads for missions to the Moon and Mars. You will be part of a world-class team delivering some of the most ambitious space missions.
REQUIREMENTS:
• Bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, or related engineering discipline
• 8+ years of mechanical engineering experience
• Proficiency with CAD modeling and technical drawing
• U.S. citizenship required due to ITAR program requirements
DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS:
• Master's or PhD in aerospace or mechanical engineering
• Spacecraft or satellite design experience
• Rapid conceptual design iteration experience
• Exceptional mechanical mechanism problem-solving skills
• Hands-on development and testing experience
• Experience with thermal and vibration analysis and test data interpretation
• Ability to take products from concept through production with minimal supervision
• Self-motivated and autonomous work capability
• GD&T (Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing) application expertise
• Experience developing satellite deployment systems
• General spacecraft systems engineering knowledge, requirements assessment, and interface control document generation
