Senior GNC Engineer

As a GNC/AOCS Engineer at Spire, you will operate as part of a technical team who maintains responsibility across the full lifecycle of its engineering products. The GNC team interfaces directly with many engineering groups to conduct R&D, design, manufacturing, and operations activities, ultimately ensuring all current and future spacecraft systems satisfy their mission. 

Ideal candidates will embrace the commercialisation of nanosatellite systems and adapt to low-cost, fast-paced systems design, development, and implementation methodologies that set Spire apart from our competition. In this fast-paced environment, the design to launch cycle is measured in weeks and months, not years! 

Responsibilities of your role:

• Technical ownership of current and future spacecraft attitude and orbit control software and hardware
• Design, model, analyze, integrate and operate attitude determination/estimation systems for small spacecraft
• Develop and utilize spacecraft dynamics and control simulations, including 'hardware-in-the-loop'
• Design, evaluate, select, qualify and implement flight sensors, including magnetometers, sun sensors, inertial measurement devices, infrared sensors, and/or star trackers
• Design, evaluate, select, qualify and implement flight actuators, including magnetic torque elements, reaction wheels, and propulsion systems
• Be hands-on in laboratory and manufacturing environments during testing, integration, and qualification of flight systems
• Provide support and analysis for on-orbit operations of spacecraft attitude determination and control systems
• Work with external contractors, manufacturers, and internal manufacturing staff to improve reliability, yield,  performance, and cost of flight systems

Qualifications / Experience:

• Extensive experience with a solid foundation in spacecraft attitude dynamics and control algorithms, with emphasis on practical application of knowledge.
• Have experience designing and/or implementing Kalman filters for attitude estimation
• Experience with flight sensors for spacecraft attitude determination/estimation
• Experience developing software using C/Python
• Have experience or familiarity with the Linux development environment
• Have experience working with external engineering contractors

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Experience writing flight software
• Experience with C or C++ development for embedded systems
• Experience with spacecraft design
• Experience with spacecraft assembly, integration, and testing
• Experience with spacecraft operations and maintenance
• Experience identifying and resolving system anomalies
• Experience creating and maintaining integration and test campaigns for attitude determination and control systems, including hardware and software

Access to US export controlled software and/or technology may be required. _#LI-DC1