Software Engineer - Backend

Astranis builds advanced satellites for high orbits, expanding humanity’s reach into the solar system. Today, Astranis satellites provide dedicated, secure networks to highly-sophisticated customers across the globe— large enterprises, sovereign governments, and the US military. With five satellites on orbit and many more set to launch soon, the company is servicing a backlog of more than $1 billion of commercial contracts.

Astranis is the preferred satellite communications partner for buyers with stringent requirements for uptime, data security, network visibility, and customization.Astranis has raised over $750 million from some of the world’s best investors, from Andreessen Horowitz to Blackrock and Fidelity, and employs a team of 450 engineers and entrepreneurs. Astranis designs, builds, and operates its satellites out of its 153,000 sq. ft. headquarters in Northern California, USA.

As a Backend Engineer on the Network Software team, you will design and implement reliable, scalable systems that form the backbone of these applications. You’ll collaborate closely with full stack engineers, hardware engineers, and mission operators to deliver end-to-end solutions that directly support satellite launches, fleet operations, and customer services. This is a chance to own critical backend components while contributing to software that helps millions of people gain affordable internet access.

This role will contribute to both our commercial and US government programs.

Role

• Design, build, and maintain backend services and APIs that enable satellite operations, ground infrastructure, and customer-facing systems
• Work with relational and non-relational databases to model and process operational and mission data
• Collaborate with full stack engineers to deliver features that combine frontend and backend functionality
• Ensure systems meet high standards of reliability, availability, and performance for mission-critical operations
• Contribute to technical design and architecture decisions that support team scalability and robustness
• Write clean, testable code and participate in code reviews
• Support monitoring, debugging, and optimization of production systems running in the cloud

Requirements

• 4+ years of backend software development experience
• Proficiency in Python, Go, or similar backend languages
• Experience building and scaling distributed systems and service-oriented architectures
• Familiarity with large scale web systems design
• Strong knowledge of with relational/SQL databases (e.g. Postgres) and data modeling
• Familiarity with cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP, or similar), containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), and CI/CD pipelines
• Strong understanding of concurrency, reliability, and scalability challenges
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative environment

Bonus

• Experience working with frontend technologies (React, TypeScript, etc.) and interest in full-stack collaboration
• Experience with Typescript/javascript
• Background in real-time systems, telemetry, or networking protocols
• Prior experience in aerospace, telecommunications, or other mission-critical industries
• Experience with NoSQL databases

What we offer: 

All our positions offer a compensation package that includes equity and robust benefits.

Base pay is a single component of Astranis's total rewards package, which may also include equity in the form of incentive stock options, high quality company-subsidized healthcare, disability and life insurance benefits, flexible PTO, 401(K) retirement, and free on-site catered meals.

Astranis pay ranges are informed and defined through professional-grade salary surveys and compensation data sources. The actual base salary offered to a successful candidate will additionally be influenced by a variety of factors including experience, credentials & certifications, educational attainment, skill level requirements, and the level and scope of the position.

Base Salary

$125,000—$155,000 USD

U.S. Citizenship, Lawful Permanent Residency, or Refugee/Asylee Status Required

(To comply with U.S. Government space technology export regulations, applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the United States, or other protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3))

Our mission and our products are meant to connect the world and everyone in it, regardless of gender, race, creed, or any other distinction. We believe in a diverse and inclusive workplace, and we encourage all people to join our team and bring their unique perspective to help make us stronger.