Principal GNC/ACS Engineer

Who We’re Looking For: Albedo is launching next-generation, ultra-high-resolution imaging satellites to service a global audience through a modern, cloud-based product interface. In order to achieve this goal, we are looking for a team of people who are both passionate about our mission and are willing to put in the work to design, develop, and test an innovative earth observation concept in the commercial industry. The times ahead will be set in a fast-paced, often uncertain environment, but if you are hard-working, kind, and team-oriented, you can expect a rewarding and purposeful experience.

We’re looking for a Principal GNC/ACS Engineer to lead the development of Albedo’s Guidance Navigation & Control/Attitude Control Systems GNC/ACS. This person will be responsible for tasks, ranging from single vehicle mission analysis, constellation deployment strategies, on-orbit calibration and initialization plans, as well as working with our suppliers to ensure Albedo’s requirements are met.

What You’ll Do:

• • Lead development of modern optimization-based solutions for spacecraft guidance, navigation, and control
  • Work with the GNC team to model and develop low jitter, fine pointing image scan maneuvers and analyze them for induced image motion
  • Develop detailed error budgets and line-of-sight simulations to account for how induced vibration from vehicle actuators translates into image degradation and what structural dynamics and isolation is required for mission success
  • Develop vehicle control system instrumentation, avionics, and flight control software
  • Work in teams and individually in the development, assembly, integration, and testing of remote sensing satellites and associated subcomponents
  • Develop flight constraints and guidance parameters to meet mission objectives
  • Analyze control system components to ensure proper integration into the overall vehicle design
  • Identify and communicate the technical, cost, and schedule risks for assigned systems and subsystems
  • Coordinate with test personnel for non-real time, real time, and hardware-in-the-loop testing of control systems
  • Support configuration design studies and test article development
  • Develop and own SV geolocation and image motion budgets
  • Travel to supplier locations

Your Ideal Skills and Experience:

• • 7-12+ years of GNC/ACS experience
  • 5+ years of experience working on scanning remote sensing control systems
  • Strong technical fundamentals in attitude knowledge, control, and pointing stability
  • Familiarity with scanning imaging sensors and vehicle maneuver patterns to maximize image quality
  • Experience with Control Moment Gyro systems, including the principles of CMG control laws
  • Experience with deriving structural dynamics requirements from line-of-sight mission objectives given tonal disturbance sources
  • Familiar with quaternion kinematics
  • Highly experienced in one or more of the following:
  • Extended Kalman filters used in real-time and offline attitude and orbit determination applications
  • Advanced techniques for accurate short-term orbit prediction and extrapolation, including propagation, fitting/splining, and smoothing
  • Development and integration of modern optimization-based solutions for spacecraft guidance, navigation, and control
  • Software framework for flight control: schedulers, hardware drivers, sensor or actuator processing, fault detection, and state machines for mode control
  • Demonstrated knowledge of the tools and processes used in developing software for real-time, deterministic, embedded control systems

Desirable Skills and Experience:

• • Experience with pointing architecture or algorithms used on a scanning imaging satellite = mega plus
  • Experience working with suppliers, providing close technical guidance, and/ or co-developing software
  • Experience with tuning feed-back and feed-ahead control algorithms via Bode, Nichols, Quantitative-feedback Theory (QFT), root locus, or phase-plane or related techniques
  • Ability to design and implement FIR, discrete-sample-time filters
  • Familiar with optimal control, MIMO system analysis, and state space synthesis techniques
  • Familiar with advanced distribution laws or inverse kinematics models

Compensation and Benefits

• • Employee friendly equity compensation
  • Asynchronous culture with flexible working hours
  • 4% direct matching 401k
  • Insurance: Medical, Vision, Dental, Mental Health
  • Parental leave and childcare coverage
  • Relocation bonus for moving to our Denver, CO HQ
  • Flexible vacation from day one
  • 10 company holidays and unlimited sick days
  • $100 monthly wellness benefit
  • Team retreats to build relationships in-person