Lead Autonomous Deep-Space Navigation Engineer

Blue Origin; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 173,000 - 243,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Life insurance

Paid parental leave

Disability insurance

401(k) with match

Education Support Program

Stock Options

Paid time off

Company holidays

Job summary

Blue Origin in Colorado is seeking a Principal Autonomous Navigation Engineer on the ATX team to advance onboard autonomous navigation for deep space missions, integrating optical and radiometric data, and shaping algorithms from concept to flight.

You will collaborate with GNC, flight software, and systems engineering, mentor navigation engineers, and contribute to critical design reviews in an Agile environment.

Qualifications

• M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• 10+ years in spacecraft navigation or astrodynamics.
• Experience developing orbit determination algorithms.
• Experience with optical navigation techniques (camera calibration, star-based navigation, etc.).
• Strong fundamentals in astrodynamics and estimation theory.
• Experience with STK/ODTK, FreeFlyer, GMAT or similar tools.
• Proficiency in Python or C++.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Ability to obtain security clearance.
• Experience with onboard autonomy.

Responsibilities

• Define end-to-end onboard autonomous orbit determination architecture.
• Lead development and integration of optical and radiometric processing for onboard nav.
• Drive technical roadmap from concept to flight for deep space missions.
• Support ground navigation operations when needed.
• Apply radiometric and optical measurements to navigation solutions for lunar and Mars missions.
• Collaborate with GNC, avionics, flight software, systems engineering, and operations.
• Mentor navigation engineers and establish best practices for testing and verification.
• Present results and support critical design reviews in Agile environment.

Skills

Spacecraft navigation

Autonomous navigation

Astrodynamics

Orbit determination

Python

C++

Written communication

Verbal communication

Team leadership

Ground navigation

Education

M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related fields

Tools

STK/ODTK

FreeFlyer

GMAT

Monte

Jira

Docker

Git

Jenkins

Job description

Blue Origin in Colorado is seeking a Principal Autonomous Navigation Engineer on the ATX team to advance onboard autonomous navigation for deep space missions, integrating optical and radiometric data, and shaping algorithms from concept to flight.

You will collaborate with GNC, flight software, and systems engineering, mentor navigation engineers, and contribute to critical design reviews in an Agile environment.