Explosives Safety Specialist

NASA•Kennedy Space Center — Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, FL, US• Full Time

Posted 7 hours ago• Business & Finance• Mechanical

Compensation

$107,228–$139,398/year

Job Description

Summary

As an Explosives Safety Specialist (Explosive Safety Officer) at the Kennedy Space Center you will be responsible for providing oversight of explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnic use and make recommendations on siting of new and existing facilities, programs, and projects. You will lead a team to ensure execution of explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnics safety program to protect personnel and property from the hazards of explosives and energetic materials.

Open & closing dates

03/26/2026 to 04/01/2026

Salary $107,228 to - $139,398 per year Pay scale & grade GS 13

Location

Who Can Apply

Current Kennedy Space Center federal employees serving on a career, career-conditional, Schedule A for individuals with disabilities, or NASA term appointment that provides eligibility to convert to a permanent appointment or a current NASA employee on a long-term rotational assignment to the NASA Engineering and Safety Center or the NASA Safety Center.

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Duties

Manages the Kennedy Space Center Explosives Safety Program, advising on and resolving complex explosives safety issues and establishing requirements for high-risk or high-visibility projects.
Advises Center leadership on explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnics safety and develops local and Agency-level safety policies for ordnance operations.
Chairs the Explosives Safety Committee, reviewing operating procedures for compliance with handling, storage, and transportation requirements of explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnics. and providing expertise for mishap investigations.
Integrates engineering and scientific data to assess explosives safety risks and develop mitigation strategies for new and existing programs or projects.
Evaluates operational plans, technical studies, and test results to provide findings, guidance, and recommendations, including design changes to ensure explosives safety compliance.
Performs explosive quantity distance calculations and structural analyses to determine safe explosive limits and recommends facility modifications to meet safety requirements.
Serves as approval authority for explosive licenses, site plans, waivers, and deviations, and directs inspection programs to ensure compliance with explosives safety standards.
Coordinates with Department of Defense and other agencies to align explosives safety requirements and maintain awareness of emerging policies, standards, and technologies.

Requirements

Current Federal employees must meet qualifications, time in grade, and 90 days after competitive appointment requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
Position subject to pre-employment background investigation or higher level clearance. Investigation/Clearance may differ and be required based on the duties/location-Directorate/Division/Branch requirements.
The financial Disclosure, Drug Testing, and/or the Travel Requirements for this position may differ and be required based on the duty location/Directorate/Division/Branch requirements.

Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular ability, skill, and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of this position and is typically in or related to this line of work.

To qualify for GS-13, you must have one year of directly related specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level:

Evaluating operational plans, technical studies, or program requirements and developing or recommending explosives safety criteria, requirements, or policies;
Controlling or overseeing the storage, handling, transportation, and use of explosives, propellants, or pyrotechnics in accordance with safety regulations and standards; and
Analyzing explosive hazards, including hazard classifications, effects, and risk mitigation measures, to prevent or reduce mishaps in programs or facilities.

Your resume must include a clear and detailed narrative description, in your own words, of how you meet the required specialized experience. Experience statements copied from a position description, vacancy announcement or other reference material constitutes plagiarism and may result in disqualification and losing consideration for the job.

NASA prohibits the use of artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted tool in drafting application and assessment responses. Please visit https://www.nasa.gov/careers/how-to-apply/#Artificial-Intelligence to review NASA's guidance on the use of AI tools during the application process.

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Evaluation

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated for this position based on how well you meet the qualifications and eligibility requirements outlined in this vacancy announcement. Your resume and supporting documentation will be reviewed in conjunction with your responses to the assessment questionnaire. As part of the assessment, your responses to the Written Interview prompts will be scored and used to place you into one of three quality groups. These scores, along with your qualifications and supporting materials, will determine your referral status. Please ensure your application materials and responses accurately reflect your experience and competencies, as misrepresentation may result in removal from consideration.

Assessment preview link:https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12918951

These competencies will be assessed using technical assessments. They may also be evaluated during a structured interview:

Ammunition and Explosives
Problem Solving
Pyrotechnics
Workplace Safety

NASA considers paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Under NASA's quality grouping process, applicants will be assessed on the position competencies and placed in one of three groups identified and defined below:

Best Qualified Group - Applicants who demonstrate a superior level of all evaluation criteria.
Highly Qualified Group - Applicants who demonstrate a satisfactory level of the evaluation criteria.
Qualified Group - Applicants who demonstrate the basic qualifications, with general knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Candidates eligible for ICTAP/CTAP, reemployment priority or priority consideration will be referred before other candidates, as necessary. If no such candidates apply or are eligible to be referred, the following candidates will be sent to the hiring official for employment consideration:

Best Qualified merit promotion candidates. Highly Qualified merit promotion candidates may also be referred, if additional candidates are needed.
Qualified candidates eligible for consideration under Schedule A or VRA in accordance with veterans' preference rules, as applicable.
Qualified candidates that are eligible for special hiring authorities or non-competitive hiring authorities.

NASA will not ask you to disclose criminal history record information during the application process or before we make a conditional/tentative offer of employment. If you apply for this position and are selected, NASA will conduct a suitability/security background investigation after you accept a tentative job offer. If you feel you are asked to disclose your criminal history before you accept a tentative offer and wish to file a complaint within 30 days, please contact: [email protected].

Required Documents

All submitted resumes must not exceed two (2) pages in length. Resumes longer than two pages will be rejected by USAJOBS. Applicants are strongly encouraged to prioritize including experience and relevant qualifications that directly align with the position advertised. All work experience and accomplishments must be associated with dates (month/year) to allow for accurate qualification assessment.

A complete application package includes a resume, required documents and completion of the vacancy announcement questionnaire. Please see this guidance: . Your resume should describe your specialized experience and support your answers to the vacancy announcement questionnaire.

Please note: if any of the following types of information are included on your resume, your application package will be disqualified:

Classified or government sensitive information.
Social Security Number (SSN)
Photos of yourself
Personal information, such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc.
Encrypted and digitally signed documents.

If your resume contains any of the above information, you must redact that information prior to the submission of your application.

The following documents are required:

Resume
SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action

There may be other supporting documents (Notification of Personnel Action SF-50, licenses, certification, veterans preference, etc.), depending on your answers to the questionnaire and job announcement description, that you may have to submit, please verify your application. Do not submit an OF-306 with your application.

If you are a surplus or displaced employee (CTAP and ICTAP), submit proof that you meet the requirements for CTAP/ICTAP. This includes copies of your agency notice, most recent Performance Rating and most recent Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) noting current position, grade level, and duty location.

If you are a veteran and you are claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. For more information on veterans' preference and possible other supporting documents that you may have to submit, please visit FedshireVets.

Official documents are required at the time of appointment for verification of eligibility and qualifications.