Ground Segment Software Engineer - Senior

United States Digital Space LLC; Delft; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

United States Digital Space LLC in Delft, Netherlands is seeking a Senior Ground Segment Engineer to own the ground segment roadmap, drive architecture decisions, and steer the development of mission-critical software for satellite control from Delft.

You will design and implement extensions with the team, coach engineers, and ensure value delivery to users while communicating in English and maintaining a long-term technical roadmap aligned with company goals.

Qualifications

• Master degree in Engineering, Computer Science or comparable
• 6+ years of experience designing and developing software systems
• Expert in Python and/or C++
• Proven experience leading software projects in full lifecycle
• Experience with (operational) ground segment software
• Experience with distributed software architectures (service-based, micro-services)
• Experience with DevOps (Gitlab CI/CD, deployment strategies)
• Pro-active, clear, and open communication in English
• Comfortable working independently and in a small team
• Eligibility for NL security clearance

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of the ground segment technical roadmap, align it with company goals and ensure its feasibility and success
• Take ownership of the ground segment architecture and lead its development according to the roadmap
• Design and develop extensions and new applications and maintain existing software with the development team and users (internal/external)
• Identify suitable technologies, perform trade-offs, and propose design changes
• Provide technical coaching to the ground segment software team
• Code and design reviews

Skills

Python

C++

Software architecture

DevOps

English communication

Education

Master Degree in Engineering or Computer Science

Tools

Gitlab CI/CD

Docker

Kafka

RabbitMQ

Job description

We are looking for a Senior Ground Segment Engineer to join our team. Our ground segment covers everything from user interfaces for commanding and telemetry to low-level processing of satellite packets. You will be a key member of the development team, taking ownership of existing or new projects, driving future development, and be responsible for the long-term technical roadmap. We are investing heavily in improving our Mission Control Software suite, capable of automating many satellite operation activities and controlling our new generation of satellites. You will be responsible for architecture decisions, design activities, product management and user support.

In your role, you ensure value delivery to internal and external users through good design and development practices. You understand how to translate user needs into requirements, how to provide abstract solutions for use cases, and how to derive concrete architectures and software implementations that get the job done – now and in the future. Therefore, you have a holistic view on problem solving, know how to prioritize your work, and that success requires iteration. Furthermore, you will provide technical coaching to the ground segment software team and have an advisory role to the management team regarding technical developments and needs.

If this sounds exciting to you, we are looking forward to receiving your application!

Specific tasks and responsibilities include

• Take ownership of the ground segment technical roadmap, align it with company goals and ensure its feasibility and success
• Take ownership of the ground segment architecture and lead its development according to the roadmap
• Design and develop extensions and new applications and maintain existing software with the development team and users (internal/external)
• Identify suitable technologies, perform trade-offs, and propose design changes
• Provide technical coaching to the ground segment software team
• Code and design reviews

Job requirements

• Master Degree in Engineering, Computer Science or comparable
• 6+ years experience with designing and developing software systems
• Expert in Python and/or C++
• Proven experience in leading software projects in the full project lifecycle
• Experience with (operational) ground segment software systems
• Experience with distributed software architectures (service-based, micro-services)
• Experience with DevOps (Gitlab CI/CD, deployment strategies)
• Pro‑active, clear, and open communication in English
• Comfortable working independently and in a small team
• Eligibility for NL security clearance

Bonus points if you bring:

• Experience with designing and developing full-stack applications
• Experience with projects in the defence or security domain
• Experience with message brokers (Kafka, RabbitMQ)
• Experience with Docker