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Senior RF Systems Engineer

Varda Space Industries

Varda Space Industries

This job is no longer accepting applications

See open jobs at Varda Space Industries.
Software Engineering
El Segundo, CA, USA
Posted on Wednesday, November 23, 2022

About Varda

There are many products that improve the quality of life on Earth that can only be manufactured in space. Our job at Varda is to make those products and bring them back down. We at Varda are proud to expand the economic bounds of humankind.

Here, you’ll have the opportunity to work at the intersection of ambition and experience. Our team has deep experience in aerospace and tech. They have honed their crafts in the trenches of major companies. Your work will be valued and evaluated by proven leaders who have chosen to apply their talents to manufacturing in space.

While our vision is big, the steps to get there are technically reasonable and operationally feasible. Our conops are clear and use cases have been proven out over decades of ISS-based research and development.

Join Varda to help leverage space for business.

About this Role

As a Sr. RF Systems Engineer at Varda, you will be a leader of our satellite vehicle comms system. You’ll provide direction and clarity to implementation details to help guide the team as we develop the next affordable manufacturing platform in space. With a blank slate, you will develop the uplink and downlink architecture, provide a plan for success, and deliver products that will go to space and back!

Some people say that you only have one chance to fly to space so you must be certain it will work. At Varda, we believe that the trip to space and back is the easiest trip our hardware takes. We stress our components above and beyond the levels it should expect to see in flight and we investigate our failures thoroughly. Come join our team and build quality electronics that you will get to see fly over and over again.

Responsibilities

  • Avionics subject matter expert for satellite bus comms network. You will develop the RF architecture by leading trade studies and determining the technologies the company should invest in long-term.
  • Responsible engineer for the satellite Radio. Scope, design, and own the component through the full product lifecycle. Innovate on fault tolerance and bring your spin on reliability for our particular application.
  • Actively collaborate with flight software and other subsystem subject matter experts on overall system needs and constraints.
  • Ultimate ownership of product acceptance and qualification testing for space environments (Thermal, Vibe, Shock, TVAC, and EMI) with support from the Avionics Test team.
  • Collaborate with mechanical designers on packaging for hardware – design for easy assembly, environments robustness, and repeatability.
  • Provide direction on system-level validation tests and integration test plans to verify the vehicle is ready for flight.
  • Perform root cause analysis on test failures and implement holistic mitigation strategies for flight risks.
  • Mentor junior engineers on their projects, challenges, and design methodologies setting a high bar for the future leaders of Varda.

Basic Qualifications

  • B.S. in Electrical or Computer Engineer or related field with 6+ years of direct experience in electronics hardware development.
  • Demonstrated experience contributing to vehicle avionics architectures and bringing them to flight.
  • Strong hands-on experience with VNAs, oscilloscopes, function generators, benchtop digital multimeters, and power supplies.
  • Proven experience developing electrical circuit boards and delivering a working product.
  • Knowledge of signal integrity, power, grounding, and general board layout principles.
  • Experience programming in Python, MATLAB, or another scripting/data analysis language.
  • Deep understanding of state-of-the-art communication protocols, their standards, and a demonstrated ability to implement across a vehicle architecture

Preferred Skills and Experience

  • Demonstrated experience in delivering flight avionics for aircraft, launch vehicles, or other space applications
  • Schematic and layout experience using Altium Designer
  • Strong understanding and experience in environmental testing, such as vibration, shock, thermal, and TVAC
  • Direct experience in launch vehicle avionics systems integration
  • Experience with high and low speed instrumentation and data acquisition
  • Firm understanding of instrumentation, interfaces and sensors including power supplies, serial devices, switch topologies, accelerometers, and 4-20mA sensors

ITAR Requirements

  • To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.

Benefits

  • Exciting team of professionals at the top of their field to working by your side
  • Working in El Segundo, CA - an awesome Southern California beach city with quick access to entertainment and outdoor activities
  • Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth
  • 401(k) matching
  • Unlimited PTO
  • Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
  • Lunch and snacks provided on site every day. Dinners provided twice a week.
  • Maternity / Paternity leave

Varda Space Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are always evaluated based on merit, qualifications, and performance. We will never discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, martial status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.

This job is no longer accepting applications

See open jobs at Varda Space Industries.