Thermal Engineering · Thermal Engineering
Spacecraft Thermal Control Engineer
Model and control spacecraft temperatures through coatings, insulation, radiators, heaters and heat-transport hardware.
Role mandate
Build the capability for the era ahead.
This team member will combine subject-matter depth, sound judgment and disciplined execution to move the mission from architecture to measurable results.
Responsibilities
- Own the Thermal Engineering workstream for Spacecraft Thermal Control Engineer and deliver measurable technical or operating outcomes.
- Own requirements, interfaces, performance budgets and verification for flight and ground systems.
- Coordinate hardware, software, payload, bus, network and mission-operation dependencies.
- Drive design reviews, risk retirement, integration and readiness through the mission lifecycle.
Required qualifications
- Engineering experience with spacecraft, payloads, RF systems, avionics, antennas or ground systems.
- Working knowledge of requirements management, interface control and verification.
- Ability to perform disciplined analysis and communicate technical risk.
Preferred experience
- Experience taking flight hardware or mission systems through qualification and operations.
- Familiarity with constellation, optical-link or quantum-communications programs.
Scientific and technical requirements
Physics, mathematics and engineering foundations
- Conduction, radiation, transient heat transfer, thermo-optical properties, contact resistance and orbital environmental loads.
- Differential equations, finite-element/finite-difference methods, uncertainty analysis and statistical test correlation.
Mathematics and working equations
- Radiation Q̇ = εσA(T⁴ − Tspace⁴); absorbed solar load Q̇solar = αGAcosθ.
- Conduction Q̇ = kAΔT/L and capacitance mcp dT/dt = ΣQ̇ describe steady and transient behavior.
- Close hot and cold cases with degradation, attitude, eclipse, duty cycle, heater control and uncertainty margins.
Hardware, flight and infrastructure components
- MLI, optical solar reflectors/coatings, radiators, thermal straps, interface fillers, heat pipes, loop heat pipes, heaters, thermostats and temperature sensors.
Software, laboratory and analysis tools
- Thermal Desktop/SINDA, ESATAN or equivalent; finite-element tools, MATLAB/Python, CAD geometry exchange and test-correlation scripts.
- Thermal-vacuum chamber, infrared camera, thermocouples/RTDs, heater control and calibrated data acquisition.
Verification and mission skills
- Correlate thermal model to balance/vacuum test; verify component qualification limits, gradients, heater authority and survival in worst hot/cold cases.
Authoritative technical references
The hiring sequence will follow operating milestones and project requirements. The position may begin through advisory, consulting or project-based work before moving into a full-time role.
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