Principal GNC Engineer

About the role

As a Principal GNC Engineer you will directly shape the in‑orbit performance of a novel space vehicle, working across vehicle‑level dynamics, control, orbit propagation, flight software and hardware‑in‑the‑loop testing.

Key responsibilities

• Design, develop and test closed‑loop guidance, navigation and control for both attitude and orbit.
• Plan trajectories and attitude motion profiles that satisfy spot‑serving constraints.
• Develop and own a 6‑DOF simulation of vehicle attitude and orbital dynamics and run Monte Carlo analyses.
• Write GNC algorithms in flight software (C++/Rust) and validate them using avionics in the loop.
• Drive sensor and actuator selection with avionics engineers to ensure reliable attitude determination and control.
• Analyze and plan orbits and constellation design to maximize overall spot‑serving capability.

Required profile

• 10+ years of professional GNC engineering experience, ideally on spacecraft or other dynamically controlled vehicles.
• Clear technical ownership of a GNC subsystem that has flown, covering simulation, algorithms and flight software.
• Strong background in modeling physical systems from first principles, including flexible body dynamics, sensors, actuators and the space environment.
• Expertise in state estimation design for attitude and orbit determination, validated in flight.
• Experience in guidance, maneuver and constellation design, including orbit selection, coverage and station‑keeping.
• Experience in real‑time spacecraft operations support, from commissioning through on‑orbit anomaly resolution.

Required skills

• Python
• C++
• Rust

What we offer

• Broad choice of medical, dental and vision coverage (company pays 100% of base policy).
• Access to HSA, FSA and 401(k) plans.
• Unlimited paid time off.
• Healthy lunches provided daily.