Autonomous Aerospace Systems Engineer, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas.

About the role

The rapid growth and proliferation of autonomous systems technologies provides exciting and impactful opportunities for applying these tools to solve national security problems. The Autonomy for Hypersonics department is applying next-generation intelligence concepts to several components of the national defense domain for hypersonic and missile defense flight systems.

Our organization is actively seeking an Early/Mid-Career Autonomous Aerospace Systems Engineer who has:

• Significant interest and knowledge in autonomous system concepts (e.g., uncertainty, perception, decisioning, algorithm V&V in simulation/hardware).
• Experience/familiarity in sensing, control, navigation, and/or dynamical systems, such as flight vehicle mechanics.
• Formal training in Aerospace Engineering or a closely related autonomous systems field such as Electrical, Computer, or Mechanical Engineering.

You will collaborate with a team of researchers, engineers, and technologists to develop autonomous flight system technologies and to mature them from concept to simulation to flight. In the near-term, you will support projects from the Autonomy for Hypersonics developmental research portfolio, applying state-of-the-art autonomous systems concepts to sensing, mission planning, and analysis for hypersonic vehicle missions. Long-term, you will develop autonomous flight solutions for prototype vehicle demonstrations (i.e., flight tests), create agent-driven simulation and analysis tools for challenging mission scenarios, and lead new projects for applying trusted autonomy to high-consequence missions.

This position includes simulation, laboratory, and field-testing operations. You will work at Sandia's laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, including the Flight Dynamics Laboratory and Navigation Warfare Laboratory, for prototyping autonomous system hardware, algorithms, and communications. While working on highly collaborative teams, you will have responsibility for and ownership of a growing body of R&D work. Components of your work will be classified and will require a security clearance. Due to the nature of the work, you must be able to work onsite at Sandia's Albuquerque laboratories. Some travel is required.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with a team of researchers, engineers, and technologists to develop autonomous flight system technologies and mature them from concept to simulation to flight.
• Develop autonomous flight solutions, such as design of subsystems/payloads or development of algorithms in flight software, for full flight vehicle demonstrations.
• Develop physics-based and/or agent-driven simulation and analysis tools for challenging mission scenarios.
• Create, implement, and lead new projects for applying trusted autonomy to high-consequence missions.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.
• Ability to acquire and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• Graduate degree in Aerospace Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering, or a highly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, thesis, or dissertation).
• Experience in applied aerodynamics, flight mechanics, or trajectory simulation with application to the design, modeling, simulation, optimization, and analysis of aerospace flight systems.
• Experience with MATLAB®, Simulink®, Python, C/C++, or other modern programming languages and repositories in technical analysis/computing and software development.
• Proven ability to work and communicate effectively in a collaborative and interdisciplinary team environment.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced/schedule-driven environment.
• Coursework and/or experience with modern applied information science and/or autonomous systems concepts.
• Coursework and/or experience with dynamical system modeling, simulation, navigation, guidance, and/or control, especially for flight systems.
• Ability to acquire and maintain an SCI-level clearance, which may require a polygraph test; or an active SCI-level clearance.

Benefits

• Challenging work with impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide.
• Extraordinary co-workers and some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world.
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities.
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions, including 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home).
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance, and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance.

These benefits vary by job classification.

Pay

Salary range is estimated at $102,400 - $199,700. Actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.

About Our Team

Department 05449, Autonomy for Hypersonics, manages an innovative research portfolio in autonomous systems development and flight demonstrations of technology advancements. The department supports the research and development of software, autonomy algorithms, prototype hardware, target recognition, and navigation/guidance/control. We actively partner with domain experts both at the Labs and throughout the nation to implement high-impact research to meet national defense needs.

A4H is pursuing research and development in autonomous systems to enhance the capabilities of the nation's hypersonic vehicles as well as other high-consequence systems. A4H enables increasingly agile hypersonic weapons that adapt to unexpected scenarios, empowering the U.S. to respond to threats anywhere in the world without putting warfighters at unnecessary risk. The challenging flight environment and limited available flight data make hypersonics one of the most complex applications for autonomy. Sandia and its partners are developing algorithms, sensors, and compact computing hardware that compress complex data processing and analysis methods into real-time decisioning tools.