At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems in air and space that impact people’s lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our work preserves freedom and democracy, and advances human discovery and our understanding of the universe. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have a lot of fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they’re making history.
Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems has an opening for a Staff Data Scientist Instrumentation/Staff Data Scientist Instrumentation to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals. This position will be located in Melbourne, FL.
As an Instrumentation Data Scientist, you will be responsible for developing instrumentation data solutions for a networked data system that collects analog, 1553, 1394, & additional bus architectures that will be implemented in advanced labs, ground test aircraft and flight test aircraft.
Essential Functions
Define Instrumentation system configurations and signal conditioning requirements and architectures common to Airborne Data Acquisition Hardware including gathering, tracking and communicating requirements effectively to multidisciplinary teams.
Perform a variety of duties, including: engineering design tasks as assigned, participating in electrical design reviews, and supporting both the architecture and electrical design teams to ensure hardware and system design allow for accurate data collection.
Develop architectural implementations for TTC Airborne Data Acquisition Systems, Telemetry ground station equipment to include auto tracking antennas, RF receivers, bit-syncs, decommutators, demultiplexers, communication system matrix, chapter 10 recorders, and camera systems.
The selected candidate will work in a dynamic people-focused environment while interacting with customers and other design engineers. The position will be based out of Melbourne, FL.
Basic Qualifications
Basic Qualifications for Staff Data Scientist:
Must have a Bachelor of Science degree in a STEM discipline AND 12 years of related professional/military experience, OR a Master's degree AND 10 years of related professional/military experience, OR a Ph.D. AND 8 years of related professional/military experience
Must have an active US Government Secret clearance (with a background investigation within the past 6 years or enrolled into Continuous Evaluation).
Must have the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance, within a reasonable amount of time as determined by business needs.
Experience working in Flight Test or Lab Test environments including hardware integration and test operations in either environment.
Solid understanding of application and implementations of data systems, telemetry and RF, onboard recording systems and ground stations, sub-systems and specialized Instrumentation test equipment.
Full knowledge of capabilities, uses, and limitations, of Strain Gages, Accelerometers, Pressure Transducers and other commonly used instrumentation sensors.
Strong knowledge of data bus architecture MIL-STD-1553, IEE-1394, ARINC-429, RS232, and RS422.
Preferred Qualifications:
Design and operational experience with TTC data systems.
Able to create detailed design specifications, ICDs, and/or interconnect diagrams.
Significant and frequent direct customer interaction including ability to clearly communicate and exchange system level requirements and data at a customer level.
Familiarity with fundamental principles of Symvionics IADS software or working in a Mission Control Room
Ability to perform under minimal direction and independently determine and develop approach to solutions and communicate effectively to program and customer leadership.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline and 12 years related experience, or Master's degree and 10 years, or Ph.D. and 8 years related experience.
- Active US Government Secret clearance (background investigation within past 6 years or enrolled in Continuous Evaluation).
- Ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance.
- Experience working in Flight Test or Lab Test environments including hardware integration and test operations.
- Solid understanding of data systems, telemetry and RF, onboard recording systems, ground stations, sub-systems and specialized instrumentation test equipment.
- Full knowledge of capabilities, uses, and limitations of Strain Gages, Accelerometers, Pressure Transducers and other commonly used instrumentation sensors.
- Strong knowledge of data bus architectures MIL-STD-1553, IEEE-1394, ARINC-429, RS232, and RS422.
- Design and operational experience with TTC data systems.
- Ability to create detailed design specifications, ICDs, and interconnect diagrams.
- Significant and frequent direct customer interaction and ability to communicate system-level requirements and data.
- Familiarity with Symvionics IADS software or experience working in a Mission Control Room.
- Ability to perform under minimal direction, independently develop approaches, and communicate effectively to program and customer leadership.
Northrop Grumman Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Northrop Grumman and has not been reviewed or approved by Northrop Grumman.
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Retirement Support — 401(k) matching is considered strong, with additional defined-benefit coverage for certain cohorts and options like catch-up contributions. Retirement programs are repeatedly highlighted as a core strength of the total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — PTO, company-paid holidays, and compressed work schedules (such as 9/80) provide meaningful time away and flexibility. These scheduling options are cited as a major quality-of-life benefit across many locations.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave alongside caregiver leave, adoption assistance, and back-up care supports a range of family needs. These programs have been expanded recently, signaling continued investment in family support.
Northrop Grumman Insights
What We Do
We are a close-knit community of big thinkers collaborating to keep the world safe. Our passion, creativity and expertise bring next-level technology solutions to life in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, space, and logistics and modernization for our customers around the globe. On the Northrop Grumman team, you’ll join our pursuit of excellence immersed in a dynamic culture of innovation and respect. Your unique perspective will help achieve our shared vision for the future of global security. Every step of the way, you'll be supported by world-class training, employee resource groups and a comprehensive benefits package that enables greater health and happiness for you and your family. Worldwide and across disciplines, we’re challenging what’s possible for technology to protect people and places from undersea to outer space and into cyberspace. And we see the impact of our performance every day. We are Northrop Grumman, and we work on what matters—now, you too can make a difference. Explore opportunities in engineering, IT, manufacturing, business management, cybersecurity and more with us. Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.








