Controls Engineer

Cosmic Frontier Labs; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision insurance

401(k)

Education benefits

Cell phone and Wi‑Fi reimbursement

One-time work-from-home stipend

Commuter benefits

Wellness programs

Job summary

Cosmic Frontier Labs in San Francisco is seeking a controls engineer to design and validate feedback loops for our space telescope hardware. You will build simulations and hardware-in-the-loop tests to prove performance before flight.

You’ll work with avionics and software teams to tune controllers, implement Kalman filters, and demonstrate end-to-end pointing stability in a fast-paced startup setting. This role offers exposure to high-precision hardware, rigorous testing, and direct impact on

Qualifications

• Strong foundation in feedback control theory, state estimation, and system dynamics.
• Experience building and using simulation environments to model closed‑loop performance, including integration with real hardware or hardware-in-the-loop systems.
• Proven ability to integrate, tune, and validate control systems on physical hardware in collaboration with avionics and software teams.

Responsibilities

• Develop control laws and estimation filters for attitude control, fine pointing, and focus or wavefront control where needed.
• Build and maintain the simulation and hardware-in-the-loop environments that prove control performance before flight.
• Collaborate with avionics and software teams to integrate, tune, and validate control loops on hardware.

Skills

Control systems

State estimation

Simulation & HIL

Hardware integration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace/Mechanical/Electrical Engineering

Tools

Simulink

Python

Job description

Cosmic Frontier’s mission is to dramatically expand access to high performance space telescopes, democratize the scientific process, and build tools for exploring the Universe.

Cosmic Frontier team members own the full lifecycle of spaceflight hardware and software, from early architecture through flight. We build and fly real hardware. The systems you build will go to orbit within the next two years.

Role Description:

We’re looking for a controls engineer to design the feedback systems that keep our telescopes stable, pointed, and precise, and to prove it in simulation and hardware in the loop.

If you care about precision and enjoy turning math into stable hardware, we want to talk.

What you’ll do:

• Develop control laws and estimation filters for attitude control, fine pointing, and focus or wavefront control where needed
• Build and maintain the simulation and HIL environments that make control performance real before flight
• Work closely with avionics and software to integrate, tune, and validate control loops on hardware

What Success looks like in the first 90 days:

• Deliver a v1 end to end pointing and stability simulation that produces the metrics we care about
• Define the sensing and actuation interfaces and the data rates that the rest of the system must support
• Run one HIL style validation on a real subsystem and document what it changed in the design

Required qualifications:

• Strong education background in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering, or a related field, with significant experience in control systems for aerospace or high precision hardware
• Strong foundation in feedback control theory, state estimation, and system dynamics, with hands on experience developing control laws and filters
• Experience building and using simulation environments to model closed loop performance, including integration with real hardware or hardware in the loop systems
• Proven ability to integrate, tune, and validate control systems on physical hardware in collaboration with avionics and software teams

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience with spacecraft attitude control, fine pointing systems, or precision stabilization applications
• Background in Kalman filtering, sensor fusion, and disturbance rejection for low noise environments
• Experience defining sensing and actuation architectures, data rates, and control system interfaces
• Comfortable operating in a fast paced startup environment with high ownership and rapid iteration
• Medical, dental, vision, reproductive healthcare, HSA/FSA, life and disability insurance, One Medical.
• 401(k), education benefits, cell phone and Wi-Fi reimbursement, one-time work-from-home stipend, commuter benefits, wellness programs.

Export control:

Due to the nature of the products and information handled in this role, employment is restricted to U.S. Persons as defined by U.S. export control laws.

Salary Band:

• L4: $120,000 - $160,000
• L5: $170,000 - $250,000

Diversity and Inclusion:

We encourage anyone who is excited about this role to apply, even if you don’t meet 100% of the qualifications. We value builders with strong judgment, high ownership, and a track record of making complex systems work in the real world.

Recruiting, hiring, mentoring, and retaining a diverse workforce is critical to our success. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

Cosmic Frontier Labs is a Program and Operating Division of the Renaissance Philanthropy Fund. Renaissance Philanthropy is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.

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