Senior Engineering Specialist – Control Analysis – Aerospace

3% 1-Year Employee Growth Rate | 7% 2-Year Employee Growth Rate | LinkedIn | NA Venture Funding

What Is Employee Growth Rate & Why Is It Important?

The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation’s space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space- delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you’ll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators. Join us and take your place in space.

At Aerospace, we are committed to providing an inclusive and diverse workplace for all employees to share in our common passion and aspiration – to carry out a mission much bigger than ourselves.

We remain committed to maintaining a safe environment for hiring as we look forward to the future of work. Click here for information on Aerospace’s COVID-19 directives and safety procedures implemented to keep our workplace safe.

Job Summary

The Vehicle Systems Division (VSD) sits at the center of the ideas and data behind current and future systems supplying innovative research and development; technical evaluations during the acquisition process; conceptual and detailed design; assembly, integration, and test; and operational support. Comprised primarily of highly-trained mechanical and aerospace engineers, VSD provides national expertise in the areas of vehicle engineering; guidance, navigation, and controls; robotics; electro-mechanical devices; embedded systems; fluid mechanics; propulsion; thermal control; orbital mechanics; mechanisms; structures; structural dynamics; and dynamic environments.

The Control Analysis Department (CAD) performs satellite and payload attitude control system analysis support for a wide variety of space programs ranging from CubeSats weighing a few kilograms with prototype payloads to the GPS constellation which countless users rely on every day. In today’s rapidly changing space environment, the department leverages both heritage and state of the art knowledge, tools, and techniques in the areas of space vehicle attitude control, dynamics, and estimation, while also researching and applying methods from emerging and related topics such as artificial intelligence and robotics, to solve new and increasingly challenging problems. As the Senior Engineering Specialist, you will work closely with internal and external stakeholders supporting all phases of a program lifecycle: conceptual studies, prototyping, source selection, development, and operations.

This is a part-time position which will follow a hybrid work model, offering partially remote with some onsite work required in our El Segundo, California location.

What You’ll Be Doing

• Providing technical and strategic guidance and mentoring to members of the Control Analysis Department
• Performing spacecraft and payload control system related tasks in the following areas: concept development, trade studies, risk assessments, design analyses, simulation development, test planning, data analysis, operations support, and anomaly resolution
• Exercising technical authority and team leadership in developing and interpreting high-quality analytical products in the department’s core areas of controls, dynamics, and estimation
• Developing solutions to novel technical problems in controls-related areas
• Applying technical expertise and analysis to provide advice to customers, management, and associate contractors
• Preparing written and verbal reports of technical activities for audiences including junior staff, peers, management, and internal and external customers
• Identifying opportunities for additional, expanded, and new technical tasking for members of the department. Assisting management in the pursuit of new opportunities.

What You Need to be Successful

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field or equivalent is required
• Typically, 12 or more years of relevant technical engineering experience is required
• Expertise in two or more of the following: spacecraft control system design and analysis, estimation theory, or advanced dynamics
• Proficiency in MATLAB/Simulink, Python, or a related language
• Experience providing technical mentorship in the area of spacecraft and/or payload controls
• Experience delivering technical presentations and writing technical documentation
• Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance, which is issued by the U.S. government. U.S. citizenship is required to obtain a security clearance.

How You Can Stand Out

It would be impressive if you have one or more of these:

• Advanced degree in a STEM field or equivalent is strongly preferred
• Typically, 15 or more years of relevant technical engineering experience is desirable
• Experience supporting spacecraft programs from concept design through launch and beyond
• Proficiency with multiple of the following:

Spacecraft attitude determination and control

Payload pointing estimation and control

Advanced control techniques and applications

Kalman filtering and stochastic processes

Modeling and simulation of control systems

Multibody and flexible body dynamics

Jitter and line of sight analyses

Implementation, testing, deploying, and calibration of control systems

Cubesat or smallsat attitude determination and control design and operations

Mobile robotics, guidance algorithms, computer vision, image processing, point-cloud analysis

Simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), unscented Kalman filters (UKFs), particle filters

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, neural networks, optimization

• A current and active TS/SCI security clearance, which is issued by the U.S. government is highly preferred. U.S. citizenship is required to obtain a security clearance.

Grade-Based Pay Range

(Min – Mid – Max)
$117,027 – $192,281 – $267,534

Ways We Reward Our Employees

During your interview process, our team will provide details of our industry-leading benefits.

Benefits vary and are applicable based on Job Type. A few highlights include:

• Comprehensive health care and wellness plans
• Paid holidays, sick time, and vacation
• Standard and alternate work schedules, including telework options
• 401(k) Plan – Employees receive a total company-paid benefit of 8%, 10%, or 12% of eligible compensation based on years of service and matching contributions; employees are immediately eligible and vested in the plan upon hire
• Flexible spending accounts
• Variable pay program for exceptional contributions
• Relocation assistance
• Professional growth and development programs to help advance your career
• Education assistance programs
• An inclusive work environment built on teamwork, flexibility, and respect

We are all unique, from diverse backgrounds and all walks of life, yet one thing bonds all of us to each other-the belief that we can make a difference. This core belief empowers us to do our best work at The Aerospace Corporation.

Equal Opportunity Commitment

The Aerospace Corporation is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. We believe that a diverse workforce creates an environment in which unique ideas are developed and differing perspectives are valued, producing superior customer solutions. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, age, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, color, religion, genetic information, marital status, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, physical disability, medical condition, mental disability, or disability status and any other characteristic protected by state or federal law. If you’re an individual with a disability or a disabled veteran who needs assistance using our online job search and application tools or need reasonable accommodation to complete the job application process, please contact us by phone at 310.336.5432 or by email at [email protected]. You can also review The Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law and the supplement, as well as the Pay Transparency Policy Statement.

Tagged as: 501+ Employees, Hide US-Only Jobs, Venture Funded