About Varda
The environment of space hold the potential to craft products that profoundly enhance life on Earth. Varda is at the forefront of this endeavor, harnessing the unique environment of low earth orbit to produce these innovations and reintroduce them to our world. Our mission transcends mere exploration; we’re expanding the economic horizons of humanity.
At Varda, you’ll be positioned at the nexus of ambition and expertise. Our seasoned team, with its rich legacy in aerospace and technology, has honed its skills in the corridors of industry giants. Here, your contributions will be both cherished and critiqued by leaders who, with a wealth of experience behind them, are now devoted to the realm of extraterrestrial manufacturing.
While our aspirations soar high, our path is grounded in technical pragmatism and operational viability. Our conceptual operations are crystalline material processing and reentry, backed by years of research and development anchored in the International Space Station’s, and commercial space sectors expansive achievements.
Join Varda, and work to finally create a bustling in-space ecosystem.
About This Role
As a Varda Guidance, Navigation, and Control Engineer you will optimize our existing GNC software to improve reliability, enable capabilities, and reduce operating cost. You will also perform system analyses, including simulations and Monte Carlo, to satisfy specifications and requirements and to drive system-level architectural decisions. You will own the full life cycle of GNC development at Varda, from design through to unit, hardware-in-the-loop, on-vehicle functionality, and flight testing. You will contribute to a sophisticated multi-degree of freedom aerospace simulation and test framework and develop and maintain design descriptions and supporting documentation.
Responsibilities
- ADCS hardware performance specification including sizing of reaction wheels, torque rods, IMU/GPS, and star trackers
- Design and implementation of autonomous satellite attitude control, collision avoidance, orbital rendezvous, and atmospheric re-entry algorithms
- Perform trajectory design, optimization, and dispersion analysis for the reentry of a space capsule
- Develop 6 degree of freedom vehicle simulation using MATLAB/Simulink
- Running Monte Carlo analysis to characterize performance of new features
- Integration and testing of GNC sensors, actuators, and software in the hardware-in-the-loop environment
- Design and implementation of ground services necessary to facilitate fully automated maneuver responsibility and maneuver scheduling decisions
- Monitoring on-orbit system performance; troubleshooting where necessary
- Coordination with other spacecraft operators, 3rd party agencies, and the US government
Basic Qualifications
- B.S. degree in aerospace, mechanical, electrical engineering, physics, or related field
- 6+ proven years of experience, or PhD with 3+ years of relevant experience
- Demonstrated knowledge in designing, modeling, testing, and flying aerospace guidance, navigation, and control systems
- Strong software and model development skills, particularly in C++/Python/MATLAB/Simulink
- Understanding of orbital mechanics, modeling and simulation, and software development
- Experience anchoring/fitting first principles models to test data or high-fidelity external simulations
- Proven system engineering and configuration management skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Master’s degree in engineering or physics
- Experience with spacecraft attitude determination and control system design
- Experience with AGI STK, FreeFlyer, or similar tools
- Understanding of multi-body dynamics, flexible body dynamics, gas dynamics, fluids, and thermodynamics
- Experience developing and verifying physical models for the purpose of control design, component sizing, and system performance evaluation
- Experience supporting flight test or flying spacecraft
- Ability to continuously manage risk and provide solutions with lean software development techniques
ITAR Requirements
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Varda, like all employers, must ensure that its employees working in the United States are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Additionally, our employees are exposed to and have access to certain export-controlled items. At present, some of our technology to which employees have access requires a license to be exported to individuals other than “U.S. Persons” as defined in U.S. export regulations. Because our employees are provided access to export-controlled items, our current policy is to only hire “U.S. persons” who are permitted to have access to our technology without an export license.
“US person” means: U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) (i.e., individual admitted to the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum in the U.S.)
Learn more about the ITAR here.
Benefits
- Exciting team of professionals at the top of their field to working by your side
- Working in El Segundo, CA - an awesome Southern California beach city with quick access to entertainment and outdoor activities
- Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth
- 401(k) matching
- Unlimited PTO
- Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
- Lunch and snacks provided on site every day. Dinners provided twice a week.
- Maternity / Paternity leave
Varda Space Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are always evaluated based on merit, qualifications, and performance. We will never discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, martial status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.
E-Verify Statement
Varda Space Industries, Inc. participates in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security E-Verify program. The E-Verify program is an Internet-based employment eligibility verification system operated by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Learn more about the E-Verify program.
E-Verify Notice Right To Work Notice
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