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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 operates end-to-end: designing, building, and operating its W-Series vehicles in-house.
As Senior Spacecraft Mission Operations Engineer, you will own and lead Varda's on-orbit mission operations for the Winnie Spaceship and establish a unique mission framework for space operations. This is a hands-on role in a startup environment where you will have significant autonomy and impact.
Key Responsibilities:
- Develop, coordinate, execute, and lead Varda's on-orbit missions from conception through completion
- Own the full operations development cycle for mission-unique payloads, including mission profile creation and execution
- Collaborate across engineering disciplines to continuously improve mission operations and ensure mission success
- Build web-based tools to automate and reduce operational burden
- Scale Varda's operational capabilities to support increasing flight cadence
You will work with teams across avionics, guidance/navigation/control (GNC), software, and thermal engineering to deliver reliable, high-consequence space operations.
Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in engineering (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, software, and thermal design practices for spacecraft
Preferred:
- 5+ years of spacecraft systems experience
- 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 U.S. person status (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual under 8 U.S.C. 1324b) due to access to export-controlled items.
