Flight Software Engineer

9 months ago

Palo Alto, CA, USASenior

Base Salary

$150k - $180k/yr

Responsibilities

Architect and implement real-time flight software for satellite command and control.
Develop embedded software for avionics, SDRs, and optical/RF payload subsystems.
Build hardware abstraction layers, device drivers, and telemetry/telecommand interfaces.
Read and integrate vendor SDKs into the flight stack for bus and payload components.
Implement autonomy features, including fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR).
Build and maintain software-in-the-loop (SIL) and hardware-in-the-loop (HITL) frameworks.
Design spacecraft-to-ground communication protocols with authentication and security.
Support hardware integration, functional testing, and on-orbit commissioning.
Collaborate with RF, GNC, and systems engineers for seamless spacecraft ops.

B.S. in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
5+ years of experience in embedded/flight software development (space, aerospace, or robotics).
Proficiency in C/C++ for real-time and resource-constrained systems.
Experience with RTOS (FreeRTOS, VxWorks, RTEMS, or similar).
Strong debugging skills with CI/CD, automated testing, and hardware bring-up.
Hands-on experience with embedded communication protocols (CAN, UART, I²C, SPI, RS-422, etc.).
Familiarity with spacecraft operations, comm protocols, and avionics integration.
Comfortable working with vendor SDKs and adapting them to flight software needs.
Passion for building reliable systems that operate in extreme environments.
Ability to work in-person or willingness to relocate to Palo Alto, CA.

CC++