Senior Communication Systems Engineer - Spacecraft

About the role

CesiumAstro is designing, building, and launching 8 new satellites in the next four years. They are BIG and super capable RF payload rideshare SmallSats with launches already secured and in-house test facilities built. As a Senior Communication Systems Engineer, you will own the design, configuration, and operation of the satellite’s space-to-ground communication links, define how the satellite communicates with the ground in both nominal and off-nominal conditions, and ensure reliable command, telemetry, and fault recovery.

Responsibilities

• Model, analyze and maintain the satellite’s link budget, modulation and coding, ensuring reliable communications from space to ground for all RF links.
• Architect hardware-based crypto solutions for flight hardware, manage pass-throughs and end points for users and operations.
• Provide strong understanding of ground station and network operations with the ability to troubleshoot issues with commercial providers and on-site terminals.
• Define how the radios are used in different mission phases, including contingency operations and emergency recovery.
• Contribute to the RF link test campaign and work with flight software and ground teams to validate end-to-end communication link performance, from antenna to command center.
• Optimize low-SWaP communications, mitigate interference, and ensure robust, fail-safe links.

What a Successful Candidate Looks Like

• You understand how to design, analyze, and operate spaceborne communication links.
• You can balance power, bandwidth, protocols and noise to ensure reliable space-to-ground connectivity.
• You can answer “what’s the link budget” with thorough analysis, EbN0, EsN0, or effective data rate given a variety of conditions.
• Extensive and practical experience with crypto—from COMSEC plan development, key management to system trouble shooting you have applied, on the ground experience.
• You know how comms fit into the broader mission, from flight software integration to ground operations.
• You are comfortable identifying problems and using your expertise to find solutions.
• You can prototype, test, and iterate quickly, focusing on what’s needed to get a mission off the ground.

Requirements and Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or a related field.
• A minimum of 5 years of experience with emphasis on satellite communications, RF system engineering, or related fields.
• Experience in design, verification, and operation of satellite communication links.
• Strong understanding of link budget analysis, modulation schemes, and ground station interfaces.
• Hands-on experience configuring and testing ground station equipment and space-qualified radios and antennas.
• Practical understanding of how space links fail, why, and how to fix them before they break.
• Ability to define and implement communication system CONOPS for nominal and emergency operations.
• Experience with satellite communication link licensing and regulatory compliance (ITU/FCC).

Pay

$133,000 – $161,000 a year.

Benefits

Full-time employment offers include company stock options and a generous benefits package including health, dental, vision, HSA, FSA, life, disability and retirement plans.