SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.
SOFTWARE ENGINEER (GROUND SEGMENT)
The SpaceX Ground Segment team is responsible for mission-critical space to ground communications and tracking of our Falcon, Dragon, and Starship vehicles. The team designs, builds, and operates a network of ground stations spanning the Earth as well as RF communication and optical tracking hardware at launch sites and on recovery vessels. The Ground Segment team also provides interfaces to NASA mission control, including command, telemetry, voice, and video, for Crew and Cargo NASA missions. As SpaceX pushes to make humanity multiplanetary, the team is working on developing the system that will be used to communicate with our vehicles and astronauts on the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
As a software engineer on the Ground Segment team, you will be responsible for designing, developing, and testing the software that is used by ground stations around the world to communicate with and track Falcon, Dragon, and Starship as they fly. You will be expected to work alongside Operators in Mission Control to ensure mission success and alongside Hardware engineers to ensure the reliability and performance of the ground stations. You will demonstrate extreme ownership of your projects through system level thinking and cross-discipline collaboration to drive the safety and success of human spaceflight. The role also includes opportunities to travel to launch sites and ground stations around the world to understand the hardware that your software runs on and the environment within which it needs to operate.
Engineers on this team are curious, collaborative, love to learn new things, and work effectively in a dynamic environment to deliver high-impact technology on a massive scale.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Architect, develop, and test software projects that run on servers around the world to communicate with spacecraft and relay data back to SpaceX
- Develop continuous integration and testing systems and hardware-in-the-loop (HITL) systems in order to confidently deploy new software to a global production environment
- Partner with avionics, flight operators, GNC, and other stakeholders to identify and execute software solutions for vehicle communications and tracking
- Write automation software to streamline the flow of telemetry from multiple vehicles in space simultaneously, through the global ground station fleet, to various vehicle customers
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, math, or science discipline; OR 2+ years of professional experience in software development in lieu of a degree
- Experience in C++ development
- Experience in Linux development
- Experience networking protocols and packet processing (Ethernet 802.3, IPV4, UDP, TCP)
PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
- 2+ years of project or industry experience with RF, spacecraft, and/or communications systems
- Experience troubleshooting interactions between software and hardware such as network devices and lab instrumentation
- Experience developing software for embedded systems in C or C++ or experience developing firmware for FPGA platforms
- Developed, debugged, and deployed software that has been used in real world applications/projects
- Experience with modern continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) tools
- Excellent communication skills both written and verbal
- Experience designing fault tolerant software
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
- Extended hours and weekend work may be required to support critical project and mission milestones
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:
Pay Range:
Software Engineer/Level I: $120,000.00 - $145,000.00/per year
Software Engineer/Level II: $140,000.00 - $170,000.00/per year
Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.
Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock, stock options, or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.
ITAR REQUIREMENTS:
- To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.
SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX 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.
Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to [email protected].
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What We Do
SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches the world’s most advanced rockets and spacecraft. The company was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk to revolutionize space transportation, with the ultimate goal of making life multiplanetary.
SpaceX has gained worldwide attention for a series of historic milestones. It is the only private company ever to return a spacecraft from low-Earth orbit, which it first accomplished in December 2010. The company made history again in May 2012 when its Dragon spacecraft attached to the International Space Station, exchanged cargo payloads, and returned safely to Earth — a technically challenging feat previously accomplished only by governments. Since then Dragon has delivered cargo to and from the space station multiple times, providing regular cargo resupply missions for NASA.
