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Salary: USD 140,333 - 179,314 / 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 its W-Series vehicles end-to-end, from avionics and guidance/navigation/control systems to thermal management and heat shields.
The Senior Spacecraft Mission Operations Engineer will lead Varda's on-orbit mission operations for the Winnie Spaceship and establish a new mission framework for space operations. This is a hands-on technical leadership role combining spacecraft operations expertise with software engineering and cross-functional coordination.
Key Responsibilities:
- Develop, coordinate, execute, and lead all on-orbit missions for Varda's spacecraft
- Own the complete operations development cycle for mission-unique payloads, from mission profile creation through execution
- Collaborate across engineering teams (avionics, GNC, software, thermal) to continuously improve mission operations and ensure mission success
- Build web-based tools and automation to reduce operational burden and scale Varda's operational capabilities
- Support growing flight cadence by scaling operational infrastructure and processes
The ideal candidate is an exceptional communicator and leader with deep spacecraft operations experience, capable of applying cross-discipline engineering to solve novel problems in a startup environment. You will have significant autonomy and ownership over mission operations strategy and execution.
Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline (Aerospace, Electrical, or Computer Science preferred)
- 5+ years of experience in real-time operations roles on complex, high-consequence operations
- 3+ years of experience developing software tools in Python, JavaScript, and/or HTML
- Familiarity with avionics, GNC (guidance, navigation, and control), software, and thermal design practices for spacecraft
Preferred Experience:
- 5+ years working with spacecraft systems
- Previous operator experience in a leadership role
- Previous in-orbit spacecraft operations experience
- Experience with Git and Atlassian products
- Familiarity with ground station networks
Note: This role requires ITAR compliance. Candidates must be U.S. persons (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or individual admitted as refugee/granted asylum) due to access to export-controlled technology.
