Mechanism Engineer Level 1

Cowboy Space Corp.; San Carlos (CA); On-site; USD 74,000 - 114,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) retirement savings plan

Paid time off

10 paid holidays per year

Paid parental leave

Relocation assistance

Daily lunch in the office

Job summary

Cowboy Space Corp. is seeking a Mechanisms Engineer to own a vehicle mechanism subsystem from concept through flight.

You will work across propulsion, structures, avionics, GNC, and launch operations to design, build, and validate integrated systems, with hands‑on hardware responsibility from day one. The role emphasizes fast iteration, cross‑functional collaboration, and delivering reliable mechanisms for ascent to reuse environments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field.
• 1+ years designing mechanisms or mechanical systems for flight vehicles or high‑performance hardware.

Responsibilities

• Own your mechanism subsystem from concept through design, analysis, test, and flight.
• Drive structural and kinematic design for minimum mass while meeting strength, stiffness, fatigue, and life requirements across ascent, entry, landing, and reuse environments.
• Balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule in every design decision.
• Perform analysis — hand calculations, FEA, tolerance stack‑ups — and validate with test and flight data.
• Define and execute qualification and acceptance test campaigns; write procedures and criteria.
• Develop and maintain engineering drawings, models, and release documentation.
• Work on the factory floor with manufacturing to iterate quickly and resolve build issues.
• Troubleshoot hardware issues, perform root cause analysis, and implement design improvements.
• Support launch operations, post‑flight inspection, and refurbishment planning.

Skills

Structural mechanics

Kinematics

Materials

Manufacturing processes

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

Tools

NX

SolidWorks

CATIA

Creo

ANSYS

Nastran

Abaqus

Job description

About Cowboy Space Corp

Mission

Cowboy Space Corporation is solving the global energy crisis by building the infrastructure for abundant, resilient space-based solar energy. We are tackling one of humanity’s most complex engineering challenges with a world-class team dedicated to delivering a revolutionary power platform. Cowboy Space Corporation is transforming how civilization powers, computes and connects - from orbit to Earth.

Background

Cowboy Space Corporation is building the infrastructure to power and connect the orbital economy. Our modular, scalable satellites collect sunlight in Low Earth Orbit to enable multiple integrated applications: transmitting energy via infrared lasers (space-to-earth and space-to-space), powering on-orbit high-performance computing clusters (GPU/TPU), and providing secure, high bandwidth optical data transport. Current energy and data systems rely on complex logistics and outdated infrastructure. Cowboy Space Corporation overcomes these challenges by enabling direct, on-demand, secure, and scalable energy distribution and data processing from space. This will revolutionize how we operate in orbit and on Earth, supporting the rapidly expanding space industrial base, ISAM (In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing) operations, remote regions, and military bases. Baiju Bhatt founded Cowboy Space Corporation in 2024. Inspired by his father’s work with NASA Langley Research Center, Baiju earned his B.S. in Physics and M.S. in Mathematics at Stanford before co-founding Robinhood, now a public company that has helped over 20 million Americans access the financial system. Cowboy Space Corporation has raised ~$365 million from Index Ventures, Interlagos, Construct Ventures, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, NEA, and others. This is an ambitious mission that demands extraordinary talent. Cowboy Space Corporation’s team has worked at places like SpaceX, Blue Origin, Stoke Space, Astranis and NASA, and is based in San Carlos, CA. If you're ready to solve complex technical challenges and help build the most important energy company in the world, we want to hear from you.

About the Role

As a Mechanisms Engineer, you will own a vehicle mechanism subsystem from concept through flight. Depending on your background and team priorities, your assignment will be separation systems, landing gear, aero control surfaces, or electromechanical actuation. This is a hands‑on role at the center of vehicle hardware development, and it is a real ownership role from day one. You will work closely with propulsion, structures, avionics, GNC, and launch operations to design integrated systems, build hardware, and validate through test. Expect to move quickly, iterate often, and be trusted with mechanisms that directly impact mission success.

Responsibilities

• Own your mechanism subsystem from concept through design, analysis, test, and flight.
• Drive structural and kinematic design for minimum mass while meeting strength, stiffness, fatigue, and operational‑life requirements across ascent, entry, landing, and reuse environments.
• Balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule in every design decision
• Perform analysis — hand calculations, FEA, tolerance stack‑ups — and validate predictions with test and flight data.
• Define and execute qualification and acceptance test campaigns; author procedures, acceptance criteria, and anomaly dispositions.
• Develop and maintain engineering drawings, models, and release documentation.
• Work directly on the factory floor with manufacturing to iterate quickly and resolve build issues in real time.
• Troubleshoot hardware anomalies, perform root cause analysis, and implement design improvements.
• Support launch operations, post‑flight inspection, and refurbishment planning.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• 1+ years of experience designing mechanisms or mechanical systems for flight vehicles or high‑performance hardware. Internships, co‑ops, and competition or research team experience count.
• Experience seeing a mechanical design through to physical hardware — built, assembled, and tested.
• Solid fundamentals in structural mechanics, kinematics, materials, and manufacturing processes.
• Proficiency with CAD (NX, SolidWorks, CATIA, or Creo) and experience creating engineering drawings to ASME Y14.5 GD&T standards.
• Working knowledge of FEA tools (ANSYS, Nastran, or Abaqus) applied to structural or mechanism problems.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Preferred Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience designing mechanisms or mechanical systems for flight vehicles or high‑performance hardware.
• Exposure to separation systems, landing gear, aero control surfaces, or flight electromechanical actuators.
• Hands‑on prototyping and machining experience — personal projects, shop work, and student build teams (FSAE, Baja, rocketry, robotics) all qualify.
• Familiarity with reusable vehicle design.
• Experience at a fast‑moving, hardware‑focused startup or early‑stage program.
• Track record of picking up unfamiliar problems quickly and closing them out with minimal direction.

Compensation and Benefits

The salary range for this position is $74,000 - $114,000 annually. The actual base salary offered will depend on factors such as job‑related skills, experience, qualifications, and internal equity.

• Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.
• Employees and their eligible dependents may enroll in medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) retirement savings plan
• Paid time off
• 10 paid holidays per calendar year
• Paid parental leave
• Relocation assistance if applicable
• Daily lunch in the office and a fully stocked kitchen with beverages and snacks

ITAR Requirements

• Export Control Requirement: To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), applicants must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about ITAR here.

Disclaimer

This job description is a summary of the primary duties and responsibilities of the job and position. It is not intended to be a comprehensive or all-inclusive listing of duties and responsibilities. Contents are subject to change at Cowboy Space Corp.’s discretion.

Cowboy Space Corp. is an equal employment opportunity employer. We consider individuals for employment or promotion according to their skills, abilities and experience. Cowboy Space Corp. is committed to complying with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, age, national origin, ancestry, physical, mental or developmental disability, sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and medical conditions relating to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding), veteran status, military status, marital or registered domestic partnership status, medical condition (including cancer or genetic characteristics), genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, as well as any other category protected by federal, state or local laws.