Propulsion Thermal Analyst

Canadarocketcompany; Toronto; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 145,000; Full time

Job summary

Canada Rocket Company in Canada is seeking a thermal analyst to apply first order calculations and run SINDA or develop analysis code across design, analysis, development, operation, and reuse scenarios for an orbital launch vehicle.

The role involves building thermal models, evaluating cooling schemes, and coupling with structural and CFD analyses in a fast-paced development environment.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in thermal analysis.
• Experience with cryogenic fluids.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, resource-constrained environment and iterative design-build-test cycles.

Responsibilities

• Perform thermal analysis of engine and stage fluid systems during static and flight operations, transients, and re-entry
• Build and run steady-state and transient thermal models using tools like Thermal Desktop/SINDA, ANSYS, or in-house codes to predict temperatures, heat fluxes, and thermal gradients
• Analyze regenerative, film, and radiation cooling schemes and size cooling channels to keep wall temperatures within material limits
• Couple thermal models with structural (thermal‑stress), fluid (CFD), and combustion analyses to support integrated multidisciplinary assessments
• Characterize heat transfer in cryogenic propellant feed systems, including tank thermal management, boil‑off, chilldown, and insulation performance
• Define and analyze thermal protection and conditioning requirements for engines, stage, lines, and valves
• Conduct trade studies and sensitivity analyses to drive design decisions on cooling, geometry, and operating conditions
• Identify thermal risks and failure modes, support anomaly investigations, and recommend design or operational mitigations

Skills

Thermal analysis

Cryogenic fluids

Fast-paced environment

Tools

Thermal Desktop/SINDA

ANSYS

Visio

CAD

Python

Job description

Canada Rocket Company is developing Canada's first medium-lift launch vehicle.

We are a team of veterans from SpaceX, Blue Origin, Rocket Lab, ArianeGroup, Pangea Propulsion, Tesla, MDA, and more, bringing over a century of combined launch and space systems experience back to Canada.

Our mission is to provide reliable, independent access to space for Canada and its allies in a rapidly expanding global market.

Our approach is defined by pragmatic engineering:

• We utilize a single 700 kN engine that scales from light- to medium-lift via engine clustering.
• We lean on simple, proven technologies to reach orbit faster, avoiding the pitfalls of complex or novel designs.
• We test early and often, catching problems on the bench instead of at the pad.

Backed by over $20M in funding secured within our first four months, including the largest all-Canadian seed round in the sector and an $8.3M Department of National Defence grant, we are moving with the speed and institutional backing required to meet Canada’s orbital launch needs.

About the role

Canada Rocket Company is building a sovereign launch capability for Canada. We'relooking for a thermal analyst who is equally proficient in applying first order calculations as they are to runningSINDA, or developing their own analysis code. You will work across design, analysis, development, operation, and reuse scenarios in a fast-moving development environment. This is a highly technical role for someone who wants to be close to details, make consequential design decisions, and helpestablishthe propulsion and stagefluidssystems of an orbital launch vehicle program from the ground up.

What you'll do

• Perform thermal analysis of engine and stage fluid systems during static and flight operations, transients, and re-entry
• Build and run steady-state and transient thermal models using tools like Thermal Desktop/SINDA, ANSYS, or in-house codes to predict temperatures, heat fluxes, and thermal gradients
• Analyze regenerative, film, and radiation cooling schemes and size cooling channels to keep wall temperatures within material limits
• Couple thermal models with structural (thermal‑stress), fluid (CFD), and combustion analyses to support integrated multidisciplinary assessments
• Characterize heat transfer in cryogenic propellant feed systems, including tank thermal management, boil‑off, chilldown, and insulation performance
• Define and analyze thermal protection and conditioning requirements for engines, stage, lines, and valves
• Conduct trade studies and sensitivity analyses to drive design decisions on cooling, geometry, and operating conditions
• Identify thermal risks and failure modes, support anomaly investigations, and recommend design or operational mitigations

Qualifications

Required

• 7+ years of experience with one or more of the following:
• Thermal analysis
• Experience with cryogenic fluids.
• Inclination toward a fast‑paced, resource‑constrained environment with rapid hardware development using iterative design‑build‑test cycles that are central to the engineering culture

Preferred

• Supersonic, hypersonic, or re‑entry heating analysis proficiency
• Fluid analysis proficiency
• Structural analysis proficiency
• Turbomachinery fluid analysis proficiency
• Experience with liquid bipropellant rocket engines
• Experience with methane systems.
• Exposure to complex fluid systems as well as understanding the behaviour of the mechanisms in those systems
• Functional proficiency in Visio, CAD, and Python