Operations Engineer III, Mission Operations

Responsibilities

• Plan and execute both simulated and live spacecraft missions across all mission phases, from early-orbit operations through complex Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO) taskings
• Develop, maintain, and continuously improve spacecraft operations procedures, drawing on deep expertise in flight software, spacecraft hardware, and ground systems to achieve mission objectives
• Maintain spacecraft telemetry and system health in real time during operations
• Identify on-orbit anomalies, lead anomaly resolution planning, and drive execution of corrective actions in coordination with engineering teams
• Conduct post-mission analysis and lessons-learned sessions to capture insights and drive continuous improvement of operational processes, procedures, and products
• Perform orbit state determination for cooperative, non-cooperative, and uncooperative space vehicles (SVs) and derive intent from observed behaviors
• Provide subject matter expertise (SME) to inform the development and refinement of flight software and ground system capabilities
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams—including systems, GNC, flight software, ground software, and hardware engineering—to support vehicle development, integration, and test activities

Qualifications

• 5+ years of spacecraft operations experience, preferably leading a team of operators
• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Systems Engineering, Physics, or a related technical field
• Demonstrated ability to perform effectively in high-pressure, real-time mission environments with sound judgment and composure
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Eligibility for a DoD Top Secret/SCI security clearance

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Astrodynamics, or a related field
• Experience with Space Domain Awareness (SDA), including tracking, orbit determination, characterization, and/or behavior analysis of resident space objects
• Prior experience with RPO missions, on-orbit servicing, inspection, or multi-satellite constellation management
• Familiarity with national security space missions (DoD and/or IC) and the broader space domain awareness (SDA) enterprise
• Experience with GNC concepts relevant to proximity operations, including relative navigation, maneuver planning, and safety zone management
• Proficiency with astrodynamics tools (e.g., AGI STK, GMAT, or equivalent) for mission planning and simulation
• Experience developing flight procedures and operational concept documentation
• Experience with ground system architecture, command and telemetry processing, and real-time mission data systems
• Experience supporting hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) or software-in-the-loop (SIL) testing
• Experience with anomaly investigation, including fault tree analysis and corrective action reporting
• Scripting or programming proficiency (Python, MATLAB, or similar) to support integration of flight software, ground software, and operational processes