The Company
Astra’s mission is to Improve Life on Earth from Space® by creating a healthier and more connected planet. Today, Astra offers one of the lowest cost-per-launch dedicated orbital launch services of any operational launch provider in the world, and one of the industry’s first flight-proven electric propulsion systems for satellites, Astra Spacecraft Engine™. Astra delivered its first commercial launch to low Earth orbit in 2021, making it the fastest company in history to reach this milestone, just five years after it was founded in 2016. Astra (NASDAQ: ASTR) was the first space launch company to be publicly traded on Nasdaq.
The Team
The space products engineering team is producing low-cost, reliable, highly efficient, Hall-effect thruster propulsion systems for modern satellites and spacecraft. Our thrusters will be used in Low Earth Orbit, Medium Earth Orbit, Geostationary Orbit, Lunar missions, and beyond. The team includes talented engineers who have designed and launched into orbit over 1,000 satellites over the course of their careers. Comprehensive design, prototype production, qualification, and acceptance tests are conducted within our Alameda, Mountain View and new Sunnyvale facilities.
The Opportunity
You will work with an interdisciplinary team of electrical engineers, systems engineers, propulsion engineers, mechanical engineers, and technicians to bring designs to life. This position will serve as the Electrical Architect for the Space Products group. New programs come in frequently. You will be a primary contributor on a team that develops new systems/modules and launches them into orbit.
How You’ll Fulfill Your Mission
- Use your high-volume electronics experience to take Astra’s space products to the next level of design for manufacturing, cost, and scale
- Design development and production boards for electronics, including working on schematics, component selection, layout and analysis
- Build development boards and other prototype hardware
- Lead and / or support functional testing, board bring-up and performance tests of components, boards and integrated systems
- Perform Worst-Case Analysis
- Perform EMI/EMC/ESD tests
- Coordinate with mechanical analysis team to verify structural and thermal performance of designs over fatigue lifecycles and space environments
Why We Value You
- 2+ years of experience in electrical system and component design, integration and testing for space applications
- Experience with analog and low power circuit design
- Experience with DC-DC converters
- Experience with PCB layout in Altium or equivalent
- Experience with programming in C/C++/Python and/or MATLAB
- Simulation experience in spice and hyperlynx or equivalent
- The desire and aptitude to get your hands dirty by jumping in to help troubleshoot an issue, review or iterate a schematic, build a test harness, or write a test script
- You can critically analyze problems and are excited by new design challenges
- You are self-motivated and have excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related field
Desired Multipliers
- Masters of Science in Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related field
- You have 5+ years of professional experience in electronics design
- Experience with power electronics
- Experience with requirements management in Jama, or equivalent
- Experience with startups, wearing-multiple-hats, and agile product development methodologies
- Experience with embedded software development, Linux scripting, and octave/matlab
- Experience with the Atlassian suite, most importantly Jira, and Confluence
ITAR Requirements: This position requires compliance with U.S. Government space technology trade restrictions, specifically the International Trafficking in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and additional regulations governing satellite, launch vehicle, missile, and other related technologies. All jobs restricted by these regulations will be contingent upon the applicant’s status as a documented U.S. Person or their ability to receive a trade license from the cognizant government agency; in addition to any required company background checks and in compliance with applicable U.S. and California laws. Similarly, positions requiring the ability to work on government contracts or a security clearance are also contingent upon the applicants ability to receive the appropriate clearance and be allowed to work on U.S. government contracts.
You do not need to match every listed expectation to apply for this position. Here at Astra, we know that diverse perspectives foster the innovation we need to be successful, and we are committed to building a team that encompasses a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and skills.
San Francisco Applicants: Astra will consider applicants with arrest and conviction records (criminal histories) in a manner consistent with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.
