Payload Flight Software Engineer

What You'll Do

Payload Flight Software

• Design, develop, integrate, and maintain flight software supporting Mantis Space payload systems.
• Define software architecture for command and control, telemetry, data handling, health monitoring, fault protection, and autonomous mission execution.
• Develop reliable software capable of operating throughout spacecraft commissioning, nominal operations, contingency scenarios, and other mission phases.
• Implement command and telemetry interfaces between payload flight software and spacecraft systems.
• Develop software tools, libraries, test infrastructure, and development environments supporting payload development and mission operations.
• Establish software configuration, version control, build, release, and deployment practices appropriate for flight hardware.
• Participate in software architecture and technical design reviews.

Spacecraft Integration

• Serve as the technical lead for payload-to-spacecraft flight software integration.
• Work directly with spacecraft vendors and integration partners to define software and system interfaces.
• Define and maintain interface requirements and Interface Control Documents (ICDs).
• Coordinate command, telemetry, timing, power-state, data-transfer, communications, and operational interfaces.
• Validate compatibility between payload software, spacecraft services, communications systems, and operational concepts.
• Participate in technical interchange meetings, interface reviews, integration reviews, and spacecraft-level design reviews.
• Identify and resolve software and systems integration issues that cross organizational or supplier boundaries.

Verification, Validation & Hardware Integration

• Develop automated software test frameworks and simulation environments.
• Develop and maintain software-in-the-loop and hardware-in-the-loop testing capabilities.
• Support payload bring-up, hardware/software integration, environmental testing, and end-to-end mission validation.
• Develop verification strategies and test procedures for flight software requirements.
• Diagnose issues spanning software, electronics, communications, sensors, payload hardware, and spacecraft interfaces.
• Participate in integration and test campaigns and support root-cause analysis of anomalies.
• Establish objective evidence demonstrating flight software readiness for launch and mission operations.

Mission Operations & On-Orbit Support

• Participate in mission planning, payload commissioning, and on-orbit operations.
• Develop operational procedures, command sequences, monitoring tools, and flight software support tools.
• Support payload activation, checkout, calibration, and transition to routine operations.
• Analyze telemetry and flight data to evaluate payload performance and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Support anomaly investigation and resolution during commissioning and routine operations.
• Develop and execute software updates when required to improve mission capability, performance, or reliability.
• Participate in operational readiness reviews and mission simulations.

Systems Engineering & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with systems, optical, electrical, mechanical, controls, RF, ground software, and mission operations engineers.
• Translate payload requirements into software requirements, architectures, interfaces, and verification strategies.
• Participate in system-level architecture and design trades.
• Identify software-driven impacts to spacecraft architecture, payload performance, power, communications, timing, and operations.
• Maintain clear technical documentation and communicate software risks, dependencies, and recommendations to engineering leadership.
• Support development of engineering standards and flight software development practices as Mantis Space scales its mission portfolio.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 5+ years of experience developing embedded, real-time, distributed, or mission-critical software systems.
• Strong proficiency in C++ and/or Rust.
• Experience developing software in Linux-based environments.
• Strong understanding of software architecture, embedded systems, interfaces, testing, and verification.
• Demonstrated ability to work across hardware and software boundaries.
• Experience troubleshooting complex systems involving software, electronics, communications, sensors, or other hardware.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively with external spacecraft vendors, suppliers, and technical partners.
• Ability to work independently while collaborating effectively within a multidisciplinary engineering organization.

Preferred Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience with spacecraft, avionics, robotics, autonomous systems, scientific instruments, or other hardware-intensive systems.
• Direct experience developing spacecraft or payload flight software.
• Familiarity with flight software frameworks such as F Prime, cFS, or equivalent architectures.
• Experience with spacecraft or embedded communications protocols including:
  • Ethernet
  • CAN
  • UART
  • SpaceWire
  • CCSDS
  • TCP/IP
  • Other spacecraft or embedded communications standards
• Experience developing command and telemetry systems.
• Experience with fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR) or fault protection.
• Experience developing autonomous or semi-autonomous mission capabilities.
• Experience integrating complex sensors, optical systems, RF systems, scientific instruments, or other advanced payloads.
• Experience with software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, and processor-in-the-loop testing.
• Experience supporting spacecraft integration campaigns and environmental testing.
• Familiarity with spacecraft ground systems and mission operations.
• Experience with spacecraft commissioning and on-orbit operations.
• Experience developing or operating software for systems requiring high reliability and fault tolerance.
• Experience working with government, commercial space, or NewSpace programs.
• Familiarity with spaceflight software standards, processes, or mission assurance practices.

Personal Attributes

• Systems thinker who naturally considers the interaction between software, hardware, spacecraft, and mission operations.