Flight Software Engineer IV — Embedded Spacecraft Systems

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL); United States; On-site; USD 176,000 - 213,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental plan

Vision plan

Wellbeing programs

Retirement plans

Paid time off

Learning opportunities

Rideshare

Childcare assistance

Flexible schedule

Parental leave

Job summary

Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, CA, seeks a Flight Software Engineer IV to design, implement, and deliver embedded flight software for spacecraft and CubeSats. The role blends software architecture, driver development, and real-time systems across mission-critical projects.

You will work in a team-oriented environment with opportunities to lead small groups, mentor engineers, and engage in rigorous testing, validation, and integration with hardware in a NASA aerospace setting.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in architecting, developing, debugging, releasing and maintaining embedded real-time software for aerospace.
• Experience developing applications for functional domains (CDH, GNC, System Fault Protection) in embedded flight processors.
• Driver development and software/hardware interfaces for custom and commercial hardware.
• IPC and distributed computing; familiarity with PCI/PCIe, UART, SPI, I2C, CAN, SpaceWire.
• Proven leadership in delivering reliable embedded software with formal lifecycle processes.
• Experience with C++, C, Python on Linux/embedded OSes such as VxWorks.

Responsibilities

• Develop complex embedded flight software for CubeSats, small satellites, and spacecraft payloads.
• Define software requirements, design solutions, code, review, and document.
• Perform thorough unit and integration testing with simulations and avionics hardware.
• Lead small teams or work independently with minimal guidance.
• Collaborate across domains to ensure mission success and software quality.

Skills

C++

C

Python

Linux

VxWorks

RTOS

Embedded software

Software architecture

Device drivers

IPC

Real-time systems

Team leadership

Verbal & written communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related discipline

Master’s degree in related discipline

PhD in related discipline

Tools

FreeRTOS

RTEMS

Zephyr

WindRiver VxWorks

Job description

Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, CA, seeks a Flight Software Engineer IV to design, implement, and deliver embedded flight software for spacecraft and CubeSats. The role blends software architecture, driver development, and real-time systems across mission-critical projects.

You will work in a team-oriented environment with opportunities to lead small groups, mentor engineers, and engage in rigorous testing, validation, and integration with hardware in a NASA aerospace setting.