End-to-End Performance Architect for Earth Observation

Independent Space News; Noordwijk; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

The European Space Agency invites applications for Lead End-to-End Performance Engineer at ESTEC, Noordwijk. You will define and oversee end-to-end performance across space and ground segments, ensuring coherence with mission requirements and interfaces.

You will collaborate with disciplines such as satellite engineering, security engineering, mission analysis, and operations, report to the Alpstar Project Manager, and lead verification, validation, and data flow monitoring.

Qualifications

• Solid knowledge of space systems engineering principles and lifecycle.
• Experience in software systems engineering, from requirements engineering to design and development and verification and validation.
• Experience with ground segment architectures, mission operations and data processing chains.
• Proven ability in interface engineering and management (ICDs, data flows and operational interfaces).
• Familiarity with end-to-end system verification and validation involving space and ground elements.
• Knowledge of ESA system engineering standards, reviews and processes.
• Knowledge of dual systems.

Responsibilities

• defining and maintaining the end-to-end system performance requirements, including allocation to subsystems, performance budgets, relating for example to latency, availability, throughput and tasking responsiveness, and the performance model, in accordance with mission requirements and the space segment design;
• supporting the Alpstar Users Forum with respect to mission and instrument performance aspects and mission data product definition, ensuring that end-to-end performance requirements are consistent with the approved concept of operations;
• establishing and maintaining the end-to-end system architecture and operations concept in accordance with mission requirements and the space segment design;
• coordinating the end-to-end system performance verification programme, including data processing, flight calibration and characterisation, payload science and ancillary data, in coordination with the respective ground and space segment engineering teams, pre-flight and during in-flight commissioning;
• reviewing the consistency and flowdown of the requirements from space segment system level to subsystem and unit level, as well as the internal and external interfaces, while ensuring traceability and coherence with mission requirements and technical and programmatic constraints; reviewing and maintaining the requirements database; and preparing, reviewing, maintaining and supporting the VCD;
• analysing and validating the performance of interfaces between space segment and ground segment components (national nodes, national operations centres, the federation layer and processing, archiving and dissemination services) and supporting interface harmonisation with external systems and contributing national or partner infrastructures;
• supporting the implementation of the end-to-end mission simulator as applicable, the ground prototype processor, and the verification of the mission products;
• supervising the industrial supplier's progress in developing and implementing the Alpstar Federated Layer and Generic Node of the Alpstar Participating States, including their interfaces with space resilience nodes and EOGS, and providing technical support for all industrial activities relating to system and ground segment development;
• monitoring the end-to-end data flow, through the instruments/payload and spacecraft subsystems, up to the final data products, ensuring availability of all required models and tools;
• coordinating the various project engineering domains in support of the systems engineering function;
• providing regular reporting to project management on all aspects of competence, identifying risks and problem areas and proposing mitigation actions, where appropriate;
• contributing to the management of the schedule and proposing schedule risk mitigation actions;
• potentially assuming responsibility, delegated from the Alpstar Project Manager, for programmatic aspects, and directly interacting with delegations and partners as required.

Skills

Space systems engineering

Software systems engineering

Ground segment architecture

Interface engineering

End-to-end verification

ESA standards

Dual systems

Education

Master’s degree in engineering or related discipline

Bachelor’s degree + 4 years relevant experience

Job description

The European Space Agency invites applications for Lead End-to-End Performance Engineer at ESTEC, Noordwijk. You will define and oversee end-to-end performance across space and ground segments, ensuring coherence with mission requirements and interfaces.

You will collaborate with disciplines such as satellite engineering, security engineering, mission analysis, and operations, report to the Alpstar Project Manager, and lead verification, validation, and data flow monitoring.