Senior Flight Software Engineer Verified today
About K2 Space
K2 is building the largest and highest-power satellites ever flown. Backed by $450M in funding from leading investors and with $500M in signed contracts from commercial and US government customers, we're mass-producing high-power satellite platforms for missions from LEO to deep space.
The Role
You will develop and verify software for some of the largest spacecraft ever flown. You will write mission-critical code that controls propulsion systems, attitude control systems, and power systems to ensure safe and reliable operation of the vehicle.
In your first 6 months you will develop core pieces of the software architecture including strategies for fault tolerance, real-time control, and telemetry downlink. In your first year you will implement larger software systems and begin verifying your code using software and hardware in the loop simulators. In your first two years you will operate your code on multiple spacecraft, demonstrating robust performance in demanding missions.
The software team works across the full stack: GNC algorithms, application software on flight computers, embedded software on microcontrollers, operating systems, HDL programming, and test systems.
Responsibilities
- Create software architecture for real-time, fault tolerant control of a 20kW+ spacecraft
- Develop software applications for control of spacecraft subsystems, including propulsion, guidance/attitude control, thermal, power, and communications systems
- Design and implement state machines for robust operation of the spacecraft
- Create and utilize robust tools to allow for rapid deployment of quality code
- Perform data analysis and anomaly investigation to identify and resolve software bugs
- Support integration and testing of the spacecraft subsystems
- Build and maintain infrastructure to increase reliability when developing and testing software
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, math, or a STEM discipline, OR 5+ years of professional experience in software engineering
- Development experience in Rust, C/C++, Python, VHDL, or SystemVerilog
Nice to Have
- Experience with spacecraft flight software development
- Fluency with Linux systems programming and driver development
- Experience with continuous integration and continuous delivery systems
- Experience building or working with hard real-time embedded systems (bare-metal or RTOS)
- Basic knowledge of electronics, computer architecture, and control systems
- Experience developing or working with state machines
- Experience with software verification and testing methods
- Experience with software and network performance analysis and debugging
- Experience with implementing Extended Kalman Filters for inertial sensors
- Experience with fault tolerant software design and implementation
- Experience defining and creating test systems for hardware-in-the-loop and hardware-out-of-the-loop
Compensation and Benefits
- Base salary: $160,000 to $200,000 plus equity
- Comprehensive benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision coverage, life insurance, and paid parental leave
Export Compliance
This role requires access to information and items controlled by U.S. export control regulations, including ITAR. You must be a U.S. person as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.15 (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual such as refugee or asylee) or otherwise eligible for a federally issued export control license.