
Orbital Analyst Level 3/4 - Systems Engineer - Colorado Springs
Job Description
Description
At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have 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.Expand your horizons, advance your career, and contribute to a secure future for generations. Northrop Grumman’s Space Sector invites you to bring your pioneering spirit to our collaborative teams. As a Orbital Analyst – Level 3 or Level 4 located in Colorado Springs, CO, you’ll be a linchpin in missions of paramount importance, defining the art of the possible from day one. This position is 100% onsite and cannot accommodate telecommute work.
This position will work a 9/80 schedule and require occasional shift work including swing or night shift, and/or 12-hr shifts
Job responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Supports on-orbit RPO operations through planning, execution and debrief phases
- Provides Space Operations expertise to ensure spacecraft/payload and ground system health, status, anomaly troubleshooting, and resolution
- Creates initial and post maneuver orbit determination
- Executes Kalman Filter monitoring/analysis and manipulation
- Development and improvement of operations procedures or processes
- Development and improvement of operational scripts, including unit testing and system testing
- Investigation and diagnosis of unexpected system signatures
- Supporting the coordination and execution of system maintenance tasks and coordinating across multiple contractor organizations including customer and external system partners to diligently accomplish all tasks
- Perform demonstrations and conduct briefings explaining how to utilize mission systems to accomplish task-based objectives
- Performing quantitative risk analysis
- Develops RPO tactics, techniques and procedures
- Performs Space Domain Awareness (SDA) planning and analysis
- Providing 24x7on-call support rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) missions and the resolution of system issues and anomalies.
- Other duties as assigned
If this job description reads like it was written specifically for you, consider joining our team!
This position is contingent upon the candidate obtaining final clearances and program access(es) within a reasonable period of time as determined by the company.
This position can be filled at either a Level 3 or Level 4.
Basic Qualifications for Level 3:
- Bachelor’s degree with 5 years of professional experience – OR – Master’s degree with 3 years of professional experience – OR – PhD with 1 year of professional experience.
- Requires an active U.S. Government DoD Top-Secret security clearance at time of application, current and within scope, with the ability to obtain and maintain SCI approval/access
- Technical background in orbital mechanics/astrodynamics
- Knowledge and experience in satellite operations engineering disciplines to include attitude control, power management, thermal control, propulsion, command and data handling, flight and ground software, and anomaly determination and resolution
- Ability to conduct a range of modeling, simulation and analysis in orbital maneuvers, orbit estimation
- Expertise in the following technical disciplines: orbital propagation and perturbations, orbit estimation, orbital maneuvers, modeling and simulation and analysis
- Familiar with a variety of astrodynamics tools (FreeFlyer, System Tool Kit (STK), NASA General Mission Analysis Tool (GMAT), Orbit Determination Toolbox (ODTBX))
- Experience with developing and presenting briefing slides to senior leaders and executive level personnel
- Ability and willingness to work odd and/or extended hours covering a 24/7 period and rotating shifts
- Be able to make decisions under high pressure environments and maintain composure in stressful situations
- Ability to troubleshoot and correct problems in a dynamic environment
Basic Qualifications for Level 4:
- Bachelor’s degree with 8 years of professional experience – OR – Master’s degree with 6 years of professional experience – OR – PhD with 4 years of professional experience.
- Requires an active U.S. Government DoD Top-Secret security clearance at time of application, current and within scope, with the ability to obtain and maintain SCI approval/access
- Technical background in orbital mechanics/astrodynamics
- Knowledge and experience in satellite operations engineering disciplines to include attitude control, power management, thermal control, propulsion, command and data handling, flight and ground software, and anomaly determination and resolution
- Ability to conduct a range of modeling, simulation and analysis in orbital maneuvers, orbit estimation
- Expertise in the following technical disciplines: orbital propagation and perturbations, orbit estimation, orbital maneuvers, modeling and simulation and analysis
- Familiar with a variety of astrodynamics tools (FreeFlyer, System Tool Kit (STK), NASA General Mission Analysis Tool (GMAT), Orbit Determination Toolbox (ODTBX))
- Experience with developing and presenting briefing slides to senior leaders and executive level personnel
- Ability and willingness to work odd and/or extended hours covering a 24/7 period and rotating shifts
- Be able to make decisions under high pressure environments and maintain composure in stressful situations
- Ability to troubleshoot and correct problems in a dynamic environment
Preferred Qualifications:
- Ability to develop and maintain operational procedures, products, and training materials
- Previous experience with troubleshooting, anomaly resolution and performing analysis on operational systems
- Support mission simulation, scripting, and verification activities.
- Proficiency with one or more of the following programming languages/tools: MATLAB, Python, SIMULINK, Fortran, Java, C/ C++
- Have an extensive comprehension of different astrodynamics coordinate frames such as ECI and RIC
- Experience with optimization techniques and their application to trajectory optimization and/or multi-objective optimization
- Prior aerospace-related work experience for a U.S Government Agency or Contractor
- Background/fundamental understand of performing statistical analysis
Curious about all the exciting developments with the Northrop Grumman Space Sector? Click the link below:
https://www.northropgrumman.com/space
Working at Northrop Grumman is more than just a paycheck. We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards and benefits package designed to help you thrive at work and in life. For more information on our Total Rewards package, please visit our Total Rewards site.
Primary Level Salary Range: $103,600.00 - $155,400.00Secondary Level Salary Range: $129,300.00 - $193,900.00The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.Optimize Your Resume for This Job
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Job Details
- Category
- Aerospace Engineering
- Employment Type
- Contract
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Posted
- Apr 14, 2026, 08:00 PM
- Listed
- Apr 15, 2026, 11:19 AM
- Compensation
- $103,600 - $155,400 per year
About Northrop Grumman
Part of the growing space & AI ecosystem pushing the frontiers of technology.
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