Space Systems Engineer

EraDrive’s goal is to revolutionize spaceflight through autonomy. EraDrive builds autonomy software and hardware that let spacecraft see, decide, and act with minimal human control. Our software is already flying in space, and we are growing it into a product family that covers rendezvous, on-orbit inspection, and space based sensing. You will be one of the early members of the EraDrive engineering team.

The Role

EraDrive is delivering multiple flight hardware payloads (“Era-Nodes”) which enable on-orbit autonomy for government and commercial customers. You will lead the end-to-end systems engineering and technical execution, from requirements definition through design, implementation, qualification, host spacecraft integration, and on-orbit operations. You will own the system architecture, interfaces, verification strategy, technical baseline, and risk posture across mechanical, thermal, electrical, software, autonomy, and operations domains. Internally, you will coordinate EraDrive's engineering team and drive cross-disciplinary decisions. Externally, you will be the primary technical interface to vendors, the host spacecraft bus team, and the program sponsor. This is a hands‑on technical leadership role: you will work in the details, close interfaces and requirements, lead reviews and test campaigns, and ensure every Era-Node is delivered as a qualified, integrated, operable flight system.

What you will do

• Lead the design, implementation, qualification, integration, and operational readiness of multiple Era-Node flight units.
• Translate mission and customer objectives into system architecture, concept of operation, requirements, and acceptance criteria.
• Define and control internal and external interfaces across the mechanical, thermal, power, data, timing, software, autonomy, and operations domains.
• Coordinate the GNC, software, AI/ML, mechatronics, hardware, and test teams; lead system trades, technical decisions, design reviews, and issue resolution.
• Serve as EraDrive's technical point of contact to suppliers and manufacturing partners, the host bus provider, and the government sponsor and customers; lead technical interchange meetings, technical tracking, and delivery.
• Develop and execute the assembly, integration, and V&V strategy for engineering units and flight units, from subsystem to end-to-end testing.
• Plan and lead environmental qualification and acceptance campaigns.
• Own system-level risk management and resolution multiple flight units.
• Lead integration with the host spacecraft and ground segment, including command, telemetry, operational procedures, and flight readiness activities.
• Support launch, commissioning, and operations by reviewing telemetry, investigating anomalies, and feeding lessons learned into subsequent units.

What you bring

• A degree in aerospace engineering, systems engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or a closely related field.
• Experience leading end-to-end development for satellite buses, hosted payloads, avionics, or flight hardware, from concept through qualification, integration, and operations.
• Multidisciplinary understanding of mechanical, thermal, electrical, data, timing, software, autonomy, and spacecraft operations interfaces.
• Experience with system trades, interface control, requirements and verification management, risk management, and formal technical reviews.
• Experience managing the technical baseline for multiple flight units or a small production run.
• Experience planning and executing functional and environmental test campaigns, including anomaly investigation and verification closure.
• Ability to coordinate and communicate technical status between internal teams and external vendors, bus providers, program sponsors, and customers.
• Clear, concise technical writing and presentation skills, with the ability to move between detailed engineering work and program-level technical leadership in a small, fast-moving team.

Bonus

• Experience integrating a hosted payload with a commercial or government spacecraft bus.
• Experience with U.S. Government or national-security space programs and their technical review, data, and mission-assurance processes.
• Experience with optical sensing payloads, cameras, embedded processors, precision timing hardware, radio crosslinks, or onboard autonomy systems.
• Experience with model-based systems engineering and requirements-management tools.
• Familiarity with spacecraft reliability, FMEA, radiation effects, EEE parts, supply-chain risk, and production quality controls.
• Having supported launch-site integration, on-orbit commissioning, or sustained spacecraft payload operations.