Spacecraft Controller

Pixxel; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 1,800,000 - 2,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Pixxel is seeking an experienced Space Operations Engineer to monitor and operate mission planning and ground systems in live production environments, ensuring real-time spacecraft monitoring and control from the control room.

You will lead on-call coverage, drive automation, develop flight procedures, telecommands, and analysis tooling for a growing satellite constellation, while upholding strict configuration control and reliability standards.

Responsibilities

• Monitor, operate, and maintain mission planning and ground systems in live production environments.
• Serve as senior on-console operator, executing routine and special procedures across all mission phases with minimal oversight.
• Own development, validation, and maintenance of flight and contingency procedures with strict configuration control.
• Lead on-call and shift coverage, providing senior judgment and escalation during non-nominal situations.
• Perform trending and analysis of spacecraft subsystems and instruments; diagnose anomalies and define new analysis checks and tooling.
• Prepare, validate, and approve Operational Database change requests.
• Build and evolve core mission planning services and algorithms for planning applications powering a growing satellite constellation.
• Shape architecture and design of mission planning and ground systems for scalability and reliability; advocate upstream for safer spacecraft operation.
• Translate mission requests into executable satellite telecommands, owning the telecommand database.
• Align mission plans with onboard scheduling and execution constraints for operational feasibility across the fleet.
• Define engineering standards for reliability, CI/CD, infrastructure-as-code, observability, and operational compliance across mission-critical systems.
• Architect, develop, and test ground software and automation frameworks for robust, hands-off space operations.
• Design, develop, and test flight software sequences and FDIR/telemetry configurations to support spacecraft health and fault management.
• Establish and maintain CI, version control, and release discipline for operational codebases.
• Champion automation as a core operational strategy across the fleet.

Job description

ROLE

• – Monitor, operate, and maintain mission planning and ground systems in live production environments, including real-time spacecraft monitoring and control in the control room
• – Serve as a senior on‑console operator, executing routine and special operational procedures across all mission phases with minimal oversight
• – Own the development, validation, and maintenance of flight operational procedures and contingency procedures, ensuring strict adherence to configuration control standards
• – Lead on‑call and shift schedule coverage, providing senior‑level judgment and escalation support during non‑nominal situations
• – Perform trending and performance analysis on spacecraft subsystems and instruments, diagnosing anomalies and defining new analysis checks and tooling as needed
• – Prepare, validate, and approve Operational Database change requests
• – Build and evolve core mission planning services and algorithms that power mission planning applications for a growing satellite constellation
• – Shape the architecture and design of mission planning and ground systems for scalability, reliability, and long‑term operability, and advocate upstream for design choices that make spacecraft easier and safer to operate
• – Translate mission requests into executable satellite telecommands, including ownership of the telecommand database
• – Align mission plans with onboard scheduling and execution constraints to ensure operational feasibility across a growing fleet
• – Define engineering standards for reliability, CI/CD, infrastructure‑as‑code, observability, and operational compliance across mission‑critical systems, and drive their adoption across the operations team
• – Architect, develop, and test ground software and automation frameworks for robust, hands‑off, long‑duration space operations
• – Design, develop, and test flight software sequences and FDIR/telemetry configurations to support spacecraft health and fault management
• – Establish and maintain CI, version control, and release discipline for operational codebases
• – Champion automation as a core operational strategy, identifying where software‑driven solutions can replace manual processes across the fleet
• – Support AIT teams across