Thermal Designer (Contingent)

Thermal Development & Ownership 

• Lead the thermal development of spacecraft subsystems from concept through flight qualification and successful transition into production

• Own subsystem-level thermal development activities including thermal architecture, thermal modeling, thermal control design, verification, testing, and qualification

• Design and evaluate thermal control solutions including conductive, radiative, and passive thermal management approaches

• Define thermal requirements, operating limits, and thermal performance margins throughout the development lifecycle

• Demonstrate compliance with thermal requirements through analysis, testing, and documented margins of safety

Analysis, Verification & Risk Reduction 

• Develop and maintain thermal models used to predict spacecraft and subsystem thermal performance

• Define thermal verification strategies and success criteria aligned with mission requirements

• Establish orbital thermal boundary conditions and environmental assumptions used in thermal analyses

• Plan and execute thermal test campaigns to validate performance and reduce technical risk

• Correlate simulation results with physical testing to continuously improve model fidelity and engineering confidence

• Lead thermal investigations and drive complex technical issues through to resolution

Cross-Functional Collaboration 

• Work closely with systems, RF, electrical, software, mechanical, manufacturing, supply chain, AIT, and mission operations teams to develop integrated spacecraft solutions

• Facilitate technical discussions regarding thermal performance, design trades, risks, and recommendations 

• Coordinate thermal activities across stakeholders to ensure successful integration, verification, and delivery

Engineering Excellence 

• Contribute to the continuous improvement of thermal engineering methods, modeling approaches, verification practices, and development workflows

• Act as a peer reviewer, mentor junior engineers, and provide technical leadership within project teams

• Promote a culture of technical rigor, accountability, collaboration, and continuous learning

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, or equivalent

• 4+ years of experience developing thermal solutions for complex mechanical, aerospace, or spacecraft systems

• Strong understanding of heat transfer, thermo-optical radiation, thermal control systems, and spacecraft thermal environments 

• Experience developing and correlating thermal models using simulation and physical testing

• Experience defining thermal requirements, operating limits, and verification approaches

• Experience with one or more thermal analysis platforms such as Simcenter Space Systems Thermal, Thermal Desktop, or equivalent
  

• Demonstrated willingness and ability to leverage AI-assisted engineering and development tools to improve productivity, design quality, and innovation while adapting to evolving technologies and best practices

• Experience with CAD platforms such as Onshape, Creo, SolidWorks, NX, or equivalent

• Understanding of design for manufacturing, assembly, integration, and test principles 

• Strong communication and documentation skills working within multidisciplinary engineering teams

• Comfortable operating in a hands-on development environment involving prototyping, testing, troubleshooting, and hardware development