Principal Mission Architect - International

About the role

Muon seeks a Principal Mission Architect and mission formulation lead to join our mission development team to help direct the development of new mission architectures, with a focus on opportunities outside the United States.  The ideal candidate is a self-motivated versatile engineer who can work with international customers to identify their true needs, manage a team of engineers to develop a cost-effective solution, and perform a range of mission-level analyses, develop requirements, and design a practical and cost-effective space mission.

This position can be performed remotely from an approved location.

Responsibilities

Develop a complete mission concept based on customer needs

Perform mission-level analysis and own all top-level mission budgets

Requirements definition and design for the mission and a variety of mission payloads

Leverage software tools and/or writing code to explore engineering trade studies and answer system design questions

Understands key metrics and spacecraft and payload design trades, and can work effectively with Muon’s instrument design team

Perform spacecraft performance and constellation configuration evaluation

Collaborate with other discipline engineers and scientists to ensure the product meets objectives

Regular international travel (30%) to support solution development and international business opportunities.

Qualifications

B.S. or higher degree in a related engineering field plus 12 years of experience working with space missions. Higher-level degrees count for 2 years experience each if they are in relevant topics.

Excellent communication, presentation, and coordination skills

Dedication to drawing conclusions based on the most important factors and data available

Spacecraft design experience

Space mission design experience

Software skills in one or more of Python, Julia, Matlab, C, C++

Travel to the Mountain View facility to support in-person meetings, build, and test

Excited to work in a fast-paced environment with new challenges each week

Nice-to-have Skills

Experience with international space programs

Experience supporting science teams to develop missions

Experience designing constellations

Spacecraft and/or constellation operations experience

Salary

The salary range for this role is $170,000 - $243,000, plus a competitive equity grant and comprehensive benefits package. Final compensation will be determined based on skills, qualifications, experience, and geographic location as assessed during the interview process.