SlipstreamJobs tracks this role from the company's public career site. Apply directly on the employer's site.
CesiumAstro is seeking a Senior Staff Thermal Engineer to join their team in Westminster, Colorado. The company develops advanced communication systems for satellites, UAVs, launch vehicles, and other space and airborne platforms.
In this role, you will own the design, analysis, and validation of thermal control systems for CesiumAstro's next-generation products. You will manage thermal designs across the full lifecycle—from initial concept and requirements definition through detailed design, simulation, manufacturing, testing, and qualification. Working as a senior member of a cross-functional engineering team, you will collaborate closely with electrical and mechanical engineers to develop highly optimized thermal solutions for spacecraft, satellite electronics, and aerospace systems.
Key responsibilities include:
- Leading thermal design and analysis efforts for complex space and aerospace applications
- Developing and validating thermal management systems using both numerical and analytical techniques
- Creating thermal resistance networks and reduced-order models for system-level analysis
- Correlating thermal models with test data from thermal chambers and TVAC testing
- Presenting engineering design reviews to customers and senior management
- Contributing to proposal-writing efforts
- Building analysis automation tools to improve team efficiency
- Ensuring manufacturability and integration of thermal control systems
You will need strong communication skills to present technical work to both internal leadership and external customers, and the ability to work autonomously within a dynamic startup environment.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Bachelor of Science or higher in Mechanical, Thermal, or Aerospace Engineering from an accredited institution
- 12 years of industry experience in thermal/mechanical design and analysis (Master's degree counts as 2 years)
- Expertise in electronics/PCBA, box, and system-level thermal design and analysis
- Strong proficiency in professional simulation tools (ANSYS preferred) and MCAD tools (SolidWorks preferred)
- Solid mechanical engineering and heat transfer foundation
- Demonstrated experience designing and analyzing radiative, conductive, and convective heat transfer
- Experience building thermal resistance networks and reduced-order thermal models
- Experience correlating thermal models with thermal chamber or TVAC test results
- Experience developing analysis automation tools (spreadsheet or script-based)
- Familiarity with manufacturing processes for thermal control systems
- Familiarity with developing thermal control systems and fixtures for lab environments
PREFERRED EXPERIENCE:
- Expertise in thermal management of phased array and/or high-power RF electronics
- Experience in thermal analysis at die, lead-frame, and package levels
- Proficiency with computational scripting languages (Matlab, Python, Mathematica, etc.)
Note: Applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, conditional resident, asylee, refugee, or eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State due to space technology export regulations.
