Senior Mechanical Engineer

To conform with the United States Government Space Technology Export Regulations, the applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., conditional resident, asylee or refugee (protected individuals as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

About the role

We are looking to add a Senior Mechanical Engineer to our Internal Missions team. If you enjoy working in a startup environment and are passionate about developing space hardware for leading-edge communications satellites, we would like to hear from you.

In this position, you will be responsible for mechanical aspects of Cesium spacecraft, subsystems, and interfaces through all phases of the development process. The ideal candidate will be versatile and proficient in mechanical analysis, electronics packaging, computer-aided design (CAD), mechanical interfaces, thermal architecture, spacecraft propulsion, deployable and actuated structures, and environmental qualification of spacecraft.

As a Cesium spacecraft team member, you will work on a small team to develop satellites and put them in orbit. You will be responsible for mechanical designs from concept through space flight including requirements definition, architecture trades and block diagrams, analysis, manufacturing, testing, qualification, and in-orbit support. Your work will have a direct impact on the success of the company. You will work closely with the engineering team and program management to ensure the successful build and launch of our satellite.

Element will be the largest, most powerful rideshare satellite in LEO. We’re launching eight of them in the next four years, starting with our first launch this year. Together, our small team will design, build, and iterate to reduce mass and cost while increasing performance, reliability, and manufacturability of a new generation of satellites.

Responsibilities

• Develop mechanical designs for spacecraft from concept through space flight, including requirements definition, architecture trades, analysis, manufacturing, testing, qualification, and in-orbit support.
• Conduct architectural trade studies including parametric and first-order cost and physical analysis.
• Perform mechanical analysis, electronics packaging, and thermal architecture design.
• Design and manufacture mechanisms and mechanical actuators.
• Ensure designs meet launch and LEO environmental requirements (thermal, shock, vibration, radiation, etc.).
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure successful satellite build and launch.
• Apply design for test, manufacturability, assembly, and reliability principles.

Requirements

• Bachelor of Science (BS) in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering from an accredited university or institution.
• Minimum of 6 years of experience (including CubeSat projects) in spacecraft mechanical engineering, covering electronics packaging, thermal, shock, vibration, stress dynamics, and cost. A Master's degree may count as two years of experience.
• Experience with professional mechanical and FEA CAD tools, such as Ansys Mechanical, SolidWorks Simulation, and Thermal Desktop.
• Experience with CNC manufacturing and GD&T.
• Experience with advanced aerospace manufacturing and materials including sandwich panels and carbon composites.
• Proficiency in detailed mechanical design (3D CAD, drawings, etc.).
• Experience with EMI/EMC mitigation techniques.
• Familiarity with spacecraft thermal architectures including heat pipes, phase change materials, contact resistance, and surface finishes, as well as fundamental understandings of thermodynamics in a spacecraft context.
• Familiarity with launch and LEO environments (thermal, shock, vibe, radiation, etc).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Proficiency in Python, C++, or other programming languages.
• Experience with two or more spacecraft structural and mechanical architectures, driving vision for the next generation of spacecraft.
• CubeSat experience.
• Robotics and control systems experience.
• Spacecraft propulsion system experience.
• Gyroscopic system experience.
• PCBA experience.

Pay

$113,000 - $136,000 a year

Benefits

• Company stock options.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance.
• HSA and FSA plans.
• Life and disability insurance.
• Retirement plans.