Satellite & Payload Checkout Engineer

PierSight; Ahmedabad District; On-site; INR 500,000 - 750,000; Full time

Job summary

PierSight is seeking a Junior Satellite & Payload Checkout Engineer in Ahmedabad, India. You will write test scripts and emulators to exercise FSW on the OBC-PLC, using standard interfaces and lab equipment.

This hands-on role emphasizes building modules that simulate sensors, actuators, and payload interfaces to validate software before flight. You will work under the Lead Satellite Ground Checkout/EGSE Engineer, developing TM/TC tests, debugging with logs and oscilloscopes, and helping

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Electronics, Computer, or Aerospace Engineering (or equivalent).
• Proficiency in Python and C/C++, including control of lab/test instruments.
• Experience with embedded communication protocols like UART, SPI, I2C, CAN.

Responsibilities

• Write test modules (Python/C/C++) to command and validate FSW on OBC-PLC over spacecraft interfaces.
• Build emulators for satellite peripherals (sensors, actuators, payload interfaces) for ground checkout.
• Develop telemetry/telecommand test scripts against ICDs, including packet encode/decode.
• Support functional test execution at FlatSat, subsystem and satellite levels; log and flag anomalies.
• Debug test failures with logs, analyzers, and JTAG; distinguish FSW bugs from test harness issues.
• Create instrument control software to drive lab RF/test equipment via SCPI/VISA.
• Maintain dashboards for telemetry, test status, and instrument readings.
• Assist senior engineers with EGSE bring-up, test readiness, and procedures.

Skills

Python

C/C++

Embedded protocols

Test scripting

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Electronics, Computer, or Aerospace Engineering

Job description

Satellite & Payload Checkout Engineer at PierSight

Title: Satellite & Payload Checkout Engineer

Location: Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India (with travel to integration and launch sites)

Role Type: Full-time Experience: 0-3 years

About the Role:
PierSight Space is looking for a Junior Satellite & Payload Checkout Engineer to join the AIT/EGSE team. You'll write the software that stands in for the real world during satellite testing: test modules that control ground checkout hardware and emulate peripherals (sensors, actuators, payload interfaces) so that the Flight Software (FSW) running on the OBC-PLC can be exercised, validated, and debugged before the satellite ever leaves the ground.

This is a hands-on coding role. You'll spend most of your time writing and debugging test scripts and peripheral emulators, not managing programs — reporting to the Lead Satellite Ground Checkout/EGSE Engineer.

Responsibilities:

• Write test modules (Python/C/C++) that command, monitor, and validate FSW behavior on the OBC-PLC over standard spacecraft interfaces (UART, SPI, I2C, CAN, RS-422/485, GPIO).
• Build software emulators for satellite and payload peripherals (sensors, actuators, SAR/EO payload interfaces, power switching) so FSW can be tested without full hardware present.
• Develop and maintain telemetry/telecommand (TM/TC) test scripts against ICDs, including packet encode/decode and command sequencing.
• Support functional test execution at FlatSat, subsystem, and satellite level — running scripts, logging results, and flagging anomalies.
• Debug test failures using logs, protocol analyzers, oscilloscopes, and JTAG/debug interfaces; distinguish FSW bugs from test harness or EGSE issues.
• Write instrument control software (Python, C/C++) to drive lab and RF test equipment (signal generators, spectrum analyzers, network analyzers, power meters) over GPIB/USB/Ethernet (SCPI, VISA).
• Build and maintain test dashboards for live visualization and logging of telemetry, test status, and instrument readings during checkout campaigns.
• Carry out RF measurements (payload/antenna characterization, link tests, etc.) using RF test instruments as part of satellite and payload checkout.
• Maintain version control and documentation for test scripts, emulator configs, dashboards, and test procedures.
  Build checkout/emulation setups end-to-end: generate schematics and BOMs, raise purchase requests for parts, and integrate the hardware and software into a working solution.
• Assist senior engineers with EGSE bring-up, test readiness reviews, and test procedure updates.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Electronics, Computer, or Aerospace Engineering (or equivalent).
• Working proficiency in Python and C/C++, including writing software to control lab/test instruments.
• Coursework or project experience with embedded communication protocols (UART, SPI, I2C, CAN).
• Comfort reading schematics, ICDs, and datasheets.
  

Preferred Qualifications (Nice to Have):

• Internship, academic, or hobbyist project experience with embedded systems, satellites, or robotics.
• Exposure to test automation frameworks (pytest, unittest) or hardware-in-the-loop testing.
• Basic familiarity with lab equipment (multimeter, oscilloscope, logic analyzer, power supply).
• Familiarity with RTOS concepts or bare-metal embedded firmware.
• Prior exposure to SAR/EO payloads or spacecraft subsystems.
• Previous experience with automated instrument control (SCPI/VISA-based test setups).
• Curious and methodical — comfortable digging into a failing test until you find the root cause.
• Careful and disciplined with documentation and configuration control.
• Eager to learn from senior AIT/EGSE engineers and take ownership of assigned test modules.
• Willing to own a task and complete that in-time during critical test campaigns.