Hypersonics TPS Thermal Engineer

Anduril-1; Mountain View (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries in Mountain View, CA, is seeking a Thermal Engineer specializing in Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) to own the design, analysis, and validation of TPS for hypersonic and high-speed flight platforms.

You will perform aerothermal heating analyses, ablation and material response modeling, and develop thermal models from hand calculations to CFD/FEA to guide critical design decisions and ensure thermal survivability.

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in AE/ME with a focus on aerothermodynamics, heat transfer, or materials science.
• 2+ years in TPS design, aerothermal analysis, or high-temperature material response.
• Strong first-principles understanding of aerodynamic heating and material response.
• Experience with ablation/thermal response codes such as FIAT, CMA, TITAN.

Responsibilities

• Own TPS design, material selection, and thermal analysis for hypersonic and high-speed flight vehicles.
• Perform aerothermal heating analysis across flight trajectories using correlations, boundary-layer methods, and CFD.
• Conduct ablation and material response modeling to predict TPS recession and thermal margins.
• Evaluate TPS materials (carbon phenolic, PICA, silicone ablators, ceramics, composites) for loads and manufacturability.
• Partner with aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, and systems engineers to integrate TPS into design.
• Define and execute thermal/material characterization tests (arcjet, furnace, flight-article testing).
• Build thermal models from hand calculations to detailed FEA/CFD to predict performance.
• Present TPS status, risks, and recommendations in reviews.
• Support failure reviews using test data and first-principles reasoning.

Skills

Aerothermodynamics

Heat transfer

CFD analysis

First-principles calculations

Material response modeling

Education

MS or PhD in Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering

Tools

FIAT

CMA

TITAN

Job description

Anduril Industries in Mountain View, CA, is seeking a Thermal Engineer specializing in Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) to own the design, analysis, and validation of TPS for hypersonic and high-speed flight platforms.

You will perform aerothermal heating analyses, ablation and material response modeling, and develop thermal models from hand calculations to CFD/FEA to guide critical design decisions and ensure thermal survivability.