Thermal Engineer

Aerospacelab; Mont-Saint-Guibert; On-site; EUR 50,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Aerospacelab is seeking a Thermal Engineer to design and implement thermal control solutions for satellites across missions. You will drive thermal stability from concept through launch, collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to optimize performance.

Your role includes analyses, modeling, hardware sizing, and interface definitions, while developing automation scripts to streamline the workflow. Fluent English is required.

Qualifications

• MSc in Mechanical/ Aerospace Engineering or Physics.
• Experience in satellite thermal design and analysis.
• Knowledge of thermal analysis tools (Systema-Thermica, ESATAN-TMS, Thermal Desktop or similar).
• Solid understanding of heat transfer fundamentals and space thermal environment.
• Fluent in English.

Responsibilities

• Perform thermal analyses of satellites and subsystems.
• Develop and maintain thermal models at satellite and subsystem level.
• Contribute to the design and sizing of thermal control hardware.
• Prepare technical documentation and interface requirements.
• Develop scripts/tools to automate repetitive tasks in thermal workflow.

Skills

Thermal analysis

Thermal design

Heat transfer

Automation scripting

Education

MSc in Mechanical/ Aerospace Engineering or Physics

Tools

Systema-Thermica

ESATAN-TMS

Thermal Desktop

Simcenter 3D

Job description

About Aerospacelab

Our mission is supported by an ambitious vertically integrated approach: design & manufacture of small satellites combined with development of earth observation services.

Since its creation in 2018, the company has already grown substantially. Our team gathers more than 25 engineering expertise, from hardware design to software development & data science.

In 2026, Aerospacelab counts offices in Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium), Toulouse (France), Lausanne (Switzerland) and US West Coast with more than 500 full-time employees, with the ambition to position itself as the European leader in small satellites.

Role overview

As a Thermal Engineer at Aerospacelab, youwill play a critical role in designing and implementing thermal controlsolutions for satellites across various missions. Utilizing your expertise inthermal engineering, you will be key in ensuring that all components remainwithin their operational temperature ranges throughout their missions.Collaborating with multidisciplinary teams, you will guide the thermal designfrom concept through launch, focusing on thermal stability and performance.

Keyactivities

• Perform thermal analyses ofsatellites and subsystems
• Develop and maintain thermalmodels at satellite and subsystem level.
• Contribute to the design andsizing of thermal control hardware
• Support the definition ofthermal interface requirements for units and payloads.
• Support thermal balance andthermal vacuum test campaigns, including test predictions, test follow-up, andpost-test data processing.
• Contribute to thermal modelcorrelation using test and in-flight data.
• Provide thermal input tohardware and mechanical teams during design iterations.
• Prepare technical documentation
• Interact with suppliersregarding thermal data, models, and interface aspects.
• Develop scripts and tools toautomate repetitive tasks and streamline the thermal analysis workflow.

Must have

• MSc degree in MechanicalEngineering, Aerospace Engineering, Physics, or a related field.
• Experience in satellite thermaldesign and analysis. Relevant spacecraft-focused thesis or internshipexperience is considered.
• Experience with a thermalanalysis tool such as Systema-Thermica, ESATAN-TMS, Thermal Desktop, orsimilar.
• Good understanding of heattransfer fundamentals (conduction, radiation, convection) and the space thermalenvironment.
• Good communication skills, teamspirit, and a proactive mindset.
• Fluency in English.

Nice to have

• Enthusiasm for automating tasksand streamlining workflows, with scripting skills (Python).
• Experience with FEM-basedthermal analysis (e.g. Simcenter 3D / NX Thermal).
• Familiaritywith relevant standards (ECSS, NASA)
• Hands-on experience withthermal or thermal vacuum testing.