Senior Mission Operations Engineer - Ground Segment

Vast is looking for a Senior Mission Operations Engineer to become a foundational member of the Ground Segment group within the  Mission Operations team and support planning and execution of Vast missions.

This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

Responsibilities:

Take extreme ownership of large impact initiatives working with engineers across disciplines to support the development of spacecraft operations & ground operations procedures, flight rules, products & processes, culminating in the safe & successful operations of a newly launched spacecraft

Provide technical and operational leadership as the operations expert in planning for and execution of pre-flight testing and checkouts of ground systems to ensure spacecraft and ground systems are ready for flight

Assist with leading the operations of Vast’s crewed and uncrewed missions for vehicle commissioning, on-orbit operations, anomaly resolution and final deorbit of the spacecraft

Perform deep-dive analysis of vehicle & ground system telemetry and deliver informed summaries as well as recommendations to mission stakeholders for further review & analysis

Formulate and lead the execution of workflows facilitating improvements to processes & systems with a focus on advancing Vast’s Mission Operations while maintaining Vast’s commitment to excellence

Strategize plans for and lead efforts to iteratively improve the Mission Systems, Mission Operations Software and other ground processes and collaborate with the Mission Systems Engineering & Ground Software Engineering teams to implement them

Work closely with Mission Management to ensure customer requirements are translated to a Concept of Operations that balances all needs

Mentor & coach junior Mission Operations Engineers, offering guidance and recommendations to ongoing workflows

Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in aerospace, mechanical, software engineering, or other engineering discipline

5+ years of experience in the operation of complex systems

Demonstrated ability to work cross-functionally with other engineering disciplines

Demonstrated ability to to critically think in high stress environments and rapidly evolving situations

Ability to disseminate critical engineering & technical information effectively and clearly

Strong verbal and written communication skills

Strong demonstrated technical leadership ability

Willing to support 24/7 operations during mission critical phases

Preferred Skills & Experience:

Experience in human spaceflight mission operations

Master’s degree in a technical field

3+ years working in a spacecraft design, build, and test environment

Technical knowledge in spacecraft systems engineering (avionics, propulsion, attitude control, communications, orbital mechanics, life support systems, thermal and power control systems)

Technical knowledge in Space-to-Ground Communication Systems (RF, Ground Stations, Modems, Antenna Systems)

Experience building from scratch a system, process and team to perform complex operations of an aerospace system (launch vehicle, satellite, crew capsule)

Software Engineering Skills (C++, Golang, Javascript, React, Software Architecture, Databases, Cloud)

Matlab or Python/Octave Proficiency

Proficient at using the command line and scripting languages

Strong Technical Writing skills

Strong mentorship and leadership skills

Additional Requirements:

Ability to travel up to 20% of the time

Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones

Pay Range: California

$137,000—$230,000 USD