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Salary: USD 144,020 - 184,026 / 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.
The Embedded Linux Engineer II – Flight role is responsible for developing and maintaining the flight software that controls how Varda's spacecraft, satellite bus, and reentry capsule operate throughout their entire orbital missions. This is a hands-on engineering position covering all phases of development from requirements capture through testing and operational support.
Key responsibilities include:
- Developing reliable, mission-critical flight software in C++ for embedded processors, using bare metal, RTOS, or Linux-based systems
- Owning the complete software development lifecycle: design, testing, integration, and validation
- Scoping projects, capturing requirements, and conducting design trades for open-ended problems
- Ensuring system quality and performance through comprehensive software test, verification, and validation (V&V) techniques
- Collaborating with cross-functional teams to solve complex problems in a fast-paced aerospace environment
The role is based in El Segundo, California, where Varda operates its primary production facility for vehicle integration and testing. The company also has offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, Alabama.
Varda was founded in 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov and is backed by leading investors including Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, and General Catalyst. The team includes veterans from SpaceX, Blue Origin, major pharmaceutical companies, and Silicon Valley.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, mathematics, physics, engineering, or equivalent technical experience in safety-critical software
- 3+ years of professional experience developing spacecraft or similar safety-critical software systems
- Strong proficiency in C++ with deep understanding of language concepts
Preferred experience:
- End-to-end experience building and launching a spacecraft
- Real-time embedded systems development and testing
- Safety-critical software development for aerospace applications
- CCSDS telemetry and telecommand systems
- F' or cFS flight software frameworks
- Python or Rust programming
- Analog and digital electronics knowledge
- Familiarity with SPI, I2C, CAN, or EtherCAT protocols
Note: This role requires U.S. person status (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual under 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)) due to access to export-controlled aerospace technology.
