Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer
This position is no longer accepting applications(closed Jul 24, 2026).
As a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer at Impulse Space, you will lead the development and operational execution of flight dynamics capabilities across current and future programs. This role spans real-time mission support, automation of maneuver execution, trajectory development for new missions, and advancement of inertial navigation beyond LEO. You will work closely with Space Operations, Mission Design, GNC, and Software to make ambitious trajectories operationally executable.
- Support Space Operations in planning, analyzing, and executing nominal and novel orbital maneuvers
- Automate maneuver planning and execution workflows to improve speed, reliability, and scalability
- Build and maintain flight dynamics tools used daily by Space Ops (orbital propagation, targeting, orbital determination, covariance analysis, maneuver reconstruction)
- Partner with Mission Design to develop and mature new trajectories for GEO, cislunar, and interplanetary missions
- Contribute to development of inertial navigation and orbit determination capabilities across GEO, cislunar, and deep-space regimes
- Perform trade studies balancing ΔV, time-of-flight, operational complexity, and navigation sensitivity
- Support critical mission phases with high-confidence analysis and rapid turnaround
- B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Astrodynamics, Physics, Applied Mathematics, or related field (M.S. or Ph.D. preferred)
- 7+ years of experience in spacecraft flight dynamics, astrodynamics, or mission design
- Demonstrated experience with orbit propagation, maneuver targeting, and covariance analysis
- Experience supporting spacecraft operations or mission-critical events
- Proficiency in Python and/or C++ for engineering tool development
- Experience developing production-quality technical software
- Experience in GEO, cislunar, or interplanetary mission regimes
- Experience with low-thrust trajectory design and optimization
- Development or maintenance of orbit determination filters (EKF, UKF, batch least squares)
- Familiarity with DSN-based navigation, optical navigation, or deep-space tracking
- Experience automating operational flight dynamics pipelines
- Background collaborating closely with GNC and flight software teams
- Familiarity with GMAT, STK, Orekit, MONTE, or similar astrodynamics tools
Additional Information:
Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options, and access to medical, vision & dental coverage as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan.
Impulse Space’s spacecraft manufacturing business is subject to U.S. export regulations including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and Export Administration Regulations (EAR). This position requires applicants to be either U.S. Persons (i.e., U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent U.S. resident (green card holder), an individual granted asylum in the U.S., or an individual admitted in U.S. refugee status) or persons eligible to obtain an export license from the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, or other applicable U.S. government agencies. Learn more about the ITAR here.
Impulse Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Impulse Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.