Lead Spacecraft Thermal Architect — Own Thermal Design

Approach Venture; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 125,000 - 165,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity participation

Medical, dental, and vision coverage

Paid parental leave

Three weeks paid vacation

Ten+ paid holidays annually

Job summary

Approach Venture is seeking a Thermal Engineer in Denver, on-site, to own the thermal architecture of advanced spacecraft. You will drive thermal modeling, hardware sizing, and verification across requirements, testing, and on-orbit operation, partnering with mechanical, electrical, avionics, and systems engineers.

The role emphasizes hands-on hardware design, detailed analyses, and mission-focused decisions in a fast-moving startup setting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 5+ years of spacecraft, aerospace, or similarly demanding thermal engineering experience.
• Experience owning thermal-control hardware from design through testing and qualification.
• Strong understanding of spacecraft thermal environments and heat-transfer fundamentals.
• Experience sizing and selecting radiators, MLI, heaters, coatings, and conductive interfaces.
• Proficiency with Thermal Desktop, SINDA/FLUINT, ESATAN, or comparable thermal modeling tools.
• Hands-on knowledge of thermal-control hardware and thermal interface materials.
• Experience defining thermal requirements and allocating appropriate thermal margins.
• Ability to translate thermal analysis into practical hardware and system design decisions.
• Strong communication skills across mechanical, electrical, systems, avionics, and test disciplines.
• Ability to independently solve complex technical problems in a fast-moving development environment.

Responsibilities

• Own spacecraft thermal architecture from early requirements through qualification, flight, and on-orbit operation.
• Define thermal requirements, operating limits, margins, and verification strategies across spacecraft systems.
• Design, select, and size thermal-control hardware including radiators, MLI, heaters, thermostats, coatings, heat pipes, and conductive interfaces.
• Build and maintain detailed spacecraft thermal models.
• Perform steady-state and transient thermal analysis across mission phases.
• Evaluate orbital heating environments including solar loading, albedo, planetary infrared, and eclipse transitions.
• Size radiator area, heater power, and thermal-control hardware based on system requirements.
• Perform trade studies that balance thermal performance with power, mechanical, avionics, and mission constraints.
• Provide data-driven recommendations to guide spacecraft architecture and hardware design.
• Support coupled thermal and structural assessments.
• Plan and execute thermal-vacuum and thermal-balance test campaigns.
• Define test-article configuration, instrumentation, and thermal test profiles.
• Correlate analytical models with physical test data and improve model fidelity based on results.
• Support hardware integration, troubleshooting, and thermal anomaly investigations.
• Document thermal analyses, design decisions, and qualification results.
• Mentor less-experienced engineers and help establish thermal engineering methods and best practices.”],
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Skills

Thermal modeling

Thermal architecture

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Problem solving

Data-driven decisions

Education

Bachelor's degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Thermal Desktop

SINDA/FLUINT

ESATAN

Python

CAD tools

Job description

Approach Venture is seeking a Thermal Engineer in Denver, on-site, to own the thermal architecture of advanced spacecraft. You will drive thermal modeling, hardware sizing, and verification across requirements, testing, and on-orbit operation, partnering with mechanical, electrical, avionics, and systems engineers.

The role emphasizes hands-on hardware design, detailed analyses, and mission-focused decisions in a fast-moving startup setting.