Vast

Spaceflight Physician

Long Beach, California, United States

$215-250k

Full Time

20 minutes ago

Back to jobs

Job description

At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. We are building artificial gravity space stations, allowing long-term stays in space without the adverse effects of zero-gravity. Our initial crewed space habitat will be Haven-1, scheduled to be the world’s first commercial space station when it launches into low earth orbit in May 2026. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.

Vast is seeking a qualified candidate for a Spaceflight Physician, reporting to the Director of Space Medicine to assist with spacecraft engineering and design and play a vital role in ensuring the safety and well-being of our crew members during missions. This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

In this role, you will collaborate with our interdisciplinary team, interface with internal and external partners and customers, and contribute to the development of critical medical operations, training materials, and protocols.

Responsibilities:

Assist internal engineering and technical teams in medical equipment selection and development of space station design and features
Support all crew medical operations, including screening, training, mission operations, crew recovery, and rehabilitation
Contribute to an ongoing space medicine educational program for relevant internal teams
Carry out space medicine flight operations with internal and external technical, operational, and programmatic teams
Assist in planning and executing the crew health stabilization plan prior to and post mission
Contribute to the research and development of future long-duration spaceflight missions, with a focus on both microgravity and artificial gravity habitats
Supervise Space Medicine trainees

Minimum Qualifications:

Medical degree such as MD or DO
Board certification or board eligibility in a generalist specialty capable of managing acute, undifferentiated illness (e.g. emergency medicine, family medicine, or a similar specialty with experience in urgent care)
Unrestricted medical license in your state of residence, with good standing and eligible to obtain an unrestricted license in the State of California
Ability to obtain a DEA number in California
Previous academic or professional experience in space medicine, including:

knowledge of life support systems
systems medicine
risk assessment methodologies
resource limited care
hyperbaric/hypobaric operations
and telemedicine

5+ years of experience with space systems medicine or spaceflight operations
10+ years of clinical experience with active practice within the last 3 months
Current Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support, and Advanced Trauma Life Support certification or equivalent training

Preferred Skills and Experience:

Completion of a formal training program in space medicine (e.g. a space medicine fellowship adhering to the core competencies agreed to by the space medicine fellowship council or a space focused aerospace medicine residency)
Experience practicing medicine in an austere environment
Experience with biomedical research
Familiarity with spacecraft systems and operations, such as orbital mechanics, avionics, propulsion, thermal control, and life support systems
Demonstrated ability to work effectively in interdisciplinary teams to solve complex problems
Strong project management skills, with the ability to handle multiple tasks and meet deadlines
Excellent organizational, communication, and technical writing skills

Additional Requirements:

Ability to travel up to 30% of the time
Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones
Maintain an active clinical practice

Salary Range: California

$215,000—$250,000 USD

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: 100% medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, flexible paid time off for exempt staff and up to 10 days of vacation for non-exempt staff, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, One Medical membership, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks. We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality meals for employees.

U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS

The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.