The Role
Leads the embedded software, FPGA, and simulation engineering team developing spacecraft RF communication and GPS/GNSS receiver systems. Owns architecture, integration, verification, qualification, and delivery across space missions. Establishes flight-critical development and testing practices, partners on hardware bring-up, manages technical roadmaps and staffing, recruits engineers, resolves risks, and supports spacecraft integration, launch, commissioning, and mission operations.
Summary Generated by Built In
As the RF Software Manager at Impulse, you will lead the team responsible for the software and FPGA firmware that powers our spacecraft communication and GPS/GNSS receiver systems. You will own the development and delivery of these systems across missions ranging from low Earth orbit to deep-space operations.
You will provide both technical and people leadership to a team of embedded software, FPGA, and simulation engineers, working closely with the avionics, flight software, ground software, and GNC teams. You will guide RF and GPS/GNSS systems from architecture and hardware bring-up through integration, qualification, launch, and mission operations, ensuring they meet demanding performance, reliability, and mission requirements.
Responsibilities
- Lead, manage, and grow a team of engineers responsible for spacecraft communication and GPS receiver systems.
- Own the architecture, development, integration, verification, and delivery of RF communication and GPS receiver software, simulation, and FPGA logic.
- Drive development and testing of interfaces between RF hardware, GPS receivers, flight computers, spacecraft flight software, and ground systems.
- Establish software development, FPGA development, testing, code review, documentation, and release practices appropriate for flight-critical RF and navigation systems.
- Direct and participate in design, code, and FPGA logic reviews, ensuring implementations are maintainable, testable, reliable, and ready for flight.
- Partner with RF and avionics hardware teams during board bring-up, integration, troubleshooting, and qualification.
- Develop team priorities, technical roadmaps, schedules, and staffing plans in coordination with program and engineering leadership.
- Recruit, interview, and onboard engineers as the RF software organization grows.
- Identify technical and programmatic risks early and drive them to resolution.
- Support spacecraft integration, environmental testing, ground-station testing, launch, commissioning, and mission operations.
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical field
- 7+ years of demonstrated experience in developing software for wireless systems in critical applications
- 2+ years of demonstrated technical leadership, team leadership, or engineering management experience.
- Demonstrated experience developing embedded software in C++.
- Strong understanding of RF communication systems, including modulation, demodulation, signal processing, calibration, and RF system control.
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Demonstrated Xilinx UltraScale+ board bring up and development experience
- Strong understanding of the major blocks of RF signal modulation/demodulation
- Familiarity in testing RF components such as PA’s, PLL’s, LNA’s, and mixers
- Demonstrated experience implementing or integrating baseband systems using BPSK, QPSK, and related digital modulation schemes.
- Familiarity with GPS/GNSS receiver concepts such as signal acquisition and tracking.
- Demonstrated experience writing software or firmware for a space environment (space link budgets, ground station integration, etc.)
Additional Information:
Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options, and access to medical, vision & dental coverage as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan.
Impulse Space’s spacecraft manufacturing business is subject to U.S. export regulations including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and Export Administration Regulations (EAR). This position requires applicants to be either U.S. Persons (i.e., U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent U.S. resident (green card holder), an individual granted asylum in the U.S., or an individual admitted in U.S. refugee status) or persons eligible to obtain an export license from the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, or other applicable U.S. government agencies. Learn more about the ITAR here.
Impulse Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Impulse Space 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.
About
Impulse Space, the in-space transportation company founded by Tom Mueller, is opening access beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with its fleet of in-space transportation vehicles. The high-energy Helios vehicle unlocks orbits beyond LEO with its powerful Deneb engine, dropping off payloads in MEO, GEO, heliocentric, lunar, and other planetary orbits. The flight-proven Mira vehicle uses a nontoxic, high-impulse chemical propulsion system to offer orbital transport, constellation deployment, and precision reentry services to customers throughout LEO. Led by a team that delivered the most reliable rockets in history, Impulse provides economical and efficient in-space transportation by reliably and rapidly getting customers where they want to go.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field
- 7+ years of experience developing software for wireless systems in critical applications
- 2+ years of technical leadership, team leadership, or engineering management experience
- Experience developing embedded software in C++
- Strong understanding of RF communication systems, including modulation, demodulation, signal processing, calibration, and RF system control
- Xilinx UltraScale+ board bring-up and development experience
- Understanding of RF signal modulation and demodulation blocks
- Experience testing RF components such as PAs, PLLs, LNAs, and mixers
- Experience implementing or integrating baseband systems using BPSK, QPSK, and related digital modulation schemes
- Familiarity with GPS/GNSS receiver signal acquisition and tracking
- Experience writing software or firmware for a space environment, including space link budgets and ground-station integration
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The Company
What We Do
Impulse enables low-cost and nimble last-mile space payload delivery - access any orbit, reach other worlds.
