Senior Remote Sensing Software Engineer

About the role

CFD Research has delivered innovative technology solutions within the Aerospace & Defense, Biomedical & Life Sciences, Intelligence & Sensing, and Energy & Materials industries since 1987. The company has earned multiple national awards for successful application and commercialization of innovative component/system technology prototypes, multi-physics simulation software, multi-disciplinary analyses, and expert support services. Headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama with facilities in Dayton, Ohio, Hollywood, Alabama, and Fort Walton Beach, Florida, CFD Research is an ISO9001:AS9100D registered company, CMMI Level II appraised for Services, and a 100% ESOP (employee-owned) recognized in Inc. Magazine's Inc5000 as a top growing company for four of the last five years. CFD is seeking a Senior Remote Sensing Software Engineer to architect advanced SDA and remote sensing exploitation pipelines, guide technical direction, and lead multi-disciplinary teams building high-fidelity space observation analytics. This work will shape next‑generation tools that integrate imaging physics, ML-based behavior inference, and multi‑sensor fusion.

Location: This role is based in the Dayton, OH area, and is 100% onsite.

Responsibilities

• Architect end‑to‑end remote sensing processing systems for EO/IR missions
• Lead development of radiometric and spectral response models
• Oversee advanced imaging algorithms including multi-frame super-resolution, deconvolution, target phenomenology detection, and low-SNR enhancement
• Direct ML‑based anomaly detection, behavior classification, and object discrimination frameworks
• Design multi-sensor fusion pipelines integrating GEOINT, Radar, RF, and optical data using Bayesian or ML-based methods
• Lead trajectory estimation and 3D kinematic modeling, including IOD, parallax exploitation, and uncertainty quantification
• Architect scalable scientific computing solutions using Python, C++, CUDA, HPC clusters, or cloud-native platforms
• Mentor junior engineers and help set technical road maps in collaboration with client and mission leadership

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in remote sensing, image/signal processing, or GEOINT data exploitation
• Experience with orbital mechanics, satellite characterization, Domain-specific applications or SDA operational workflows
• Experience with Python, scientific Python packages or other Object-oriented programming languages such as C++ or JavaScript
• Experience architecting with large-scale software environments (such as CUDA, HPC or cloud)
• Experience with ML systems for imagery processing, target detection, tracking, or object classification
• Bachelor’s degree in related STEM field
• U.S. Citizenship is required
• ACTIVE TS/SCI clearance IS REQUIRED, and willingness to take a polygraph

Skills

• Experience with remote sensing systems in support of missile warning/tracking missions
• Experience with building/training synthetic models for simulation‑aided training
• Experience integrating EO/IR, RF, Radar, or GEOINT tracks into fused solutions
• Record of publications, whitepapers, presentations or mission briefings
• Experience with uncertainty quantification, Kalman filtering, or tracking algorithms
• Experience with AI‑augmented development workflows or agentic tools
• Master’s degree or Ph.D. in Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Software Engineering or related field

Benefits

• Employer matching 401(k)
• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
• Highly competitive insurance package (medical, vision, dental)
• Company paid leave
• Compensation time
• Parental leave
• Long-term disability
• Short-term disability
• Accidental death and dismemberment
• Life insurance
• Performance appraisals twice a year
• Annual pay increases based on corporate goals, personal development, performance, and outstanding achievements
• Group and individual bonuses for exceptional performance
• Part-Time and Temporary employee-owners may receive partial or reduced benefits and leave time based on employment status level