Orbit Operations Engineer

Posted 22 Days Ago
Be an Early Applicant
Hawthorne, CA, USA
In-Office
110K-185K Annually
Mid level
Energy • Solar • Renewable Energy
The Role
Operate spacecraft and develop mission-operations infrastructure for a growing satellite constellation. Responsibilities include monitoring telemetry and spacecraft health, investigating anomalies, planning maneuvers, coordinating ground-station passes, supporting satellite commissioning, maintaining procedures and command sequences, automating monitoring and anomaly response, validating operations through simulations, managing fault responses, and participating in 24/7 rotating shifts.
Summary Generated by Built In

At Reflect, you will be expected to move fast, have a lot of ownership and, most importantly, be able to effect change. If this excites you, we are interested in hearing about your best work and accomplishments across any domain and from any points in your life.

About the Role

As an Orbit Operations Engineer, you'll own both the day-to-day operation of our spacecraft and the development of the operational infrastructure that makes it all work. This is a high-ownership role on a small, collaborative mission operations team. You won't just execute procedures, you'll write them, improve them, and help define how we operate as a company.

You'll monitor spacecraft health, investigate anomalies, plan maneuvers, and coordinate ground station passes. You'll also build and refine the tools, scripts, and processes that keep our future fleet running smoothly. As our constellation grows, you'll help shape operational strategies, maintain and update mission requirements, and drive continuous improvement across our satellite and ground segment.

Responsibilities

  • Monitor real-time telemetry and spacecraft subsystem health

  • Triage and investigate on-orbit anomalies end-to-end and document findings and lessons learned to improve fleet reliability

  • Perform long-term telemetry trending and performance analysis to detect subsystem degradation, refine alarm limits, and inform operational and design decisions

  • Plan and execute spacecraft maneuvers, station-keeping, and orbital adjustments

  • Coordinate ground station passes and scheduling

  • Support LEOP, bus and payload commissioning, and orbit-raising campaigns for new satellites, executing procedures and contributing to in-orbit test and checkout

  • Develop, validate, and maintain operational procedures and command sequences

  • Build automation for telemetry monitoring and alerting, pass scheduling, routine commanding, and anomaly detection and response

  • Collaborate with spacecraft engineering teams to define CONOPS, fault management, and spacecraft procedures

  • Support deployment and testing of ground software updates and infrastructure changes

  • Validate procedures, command sequences, and automation against simulation and hardware-in-the-loop environments prior to on-orbit execution

  • Define, validate, and maintain onboard FDIR and fault management responses

  • Plan and execute operational readiness activities, including simulations and dress rehearsals

  • Participate in 24/7 rotating shift work to meet mission needs

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related STEM field

  • 3+ years of experience in satellite mission operations or a related field

  • Solid understanding of spacecraft systems and subsystem interactions

  • Proficiency with mission control software (e.g. OpenC3 COSMOS, Kratos EPOCH, L3Harris InControl, or similar)

  • Strong programming and scripting skills (Python, C++ preferred)

  • Familiarity with Linux environments and command-line tools

  • Experience with DevOps tools and practices (Git, Docker, CI/CD)

  • Familiarity with RF systems, ground station operations, or link budgets

  • Experience developing operational requirements or CONOPS documentation

  • Strong troubleshooting skills, with experience using data analysis to diagnose complex systems

  • Clear written and verbal communication skills

  • Sound judgment and composure in real-time, high-pressure operational environments

  • Experience operating multi-satellite constellations or fleets is a plus

Even if you don’t meet 100% of the above qualifications, we are likely still interested in hearing from you. Hiring exceptional individuals is our #1 priority, and we believe that exceptional people often have highly unusual backgrounds.

We are also interested in carving out unique roles for unconventional people that we are excited about working with.

Benefits

Reflect Orbital’s success will hinge on our team, which is why our compensation and benefits plan is designed to reward our employees and support their families as generously as we’re able.

  • Broad choice of medical/dental/vision coverage, Reflect covers 100% of each base-policy

  • Access to HSA, FSA, and 401K

  • Unlimited paid time off

  • Healthy lunches provided daily

Equal Opportunity

Reflect Orbital is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Reflect Orbital is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

More about Reflect Orbital:

Learn more about our team here.

Skills Required

  • Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related STEM field
  • 3+ years of experience in satellite mission operations or a related field
  • Solid understanding of spacecraft systems and subsystem interactions
  • Proficiency with mission control software such as OpenC3 COSMOS, Kratos EPOCH, L3Harris InControl, or similar
  • Strong programming and scripting skills; Python and C++ preferred
  • Familiarity with Linux environments and command-line tools
  • Experience with DevOps tools and practices, including Git, Docker, and CI/CD
  • Familiarity with RF systems, ground station operations, or link budgets
  • Experience developing operational requirements or CONOPS documentation
  • Strong troubleshooting skills and experience using data analysis to diagnose complex systems
  • Clear written and verbal communication skills
  • Sound judgment and composure in real-time, high-pressure operational environments
  • Experience operating multi-satellite constellations or fleets
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The Company
HQ: Los Angeles, CA
26 Employees
Year Founded: 2021

What We Do

Reflect Orbital is developing technology to sell sunlight to those who need it. We imagine a future where sunlight continues powering solar farms and providing lighting after the sun sets. We’re a small team of engineers who make progress by building things quickly and iteratively. Time is our greatest constraint. Join us.

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