Principal Electrical Engineer I - Phased Array Unit Lead

CesiumAstro; Westminster (MD); On-site; USD 150,000 - 182,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Health insurance

Dental plan

Vision plan

Retirement plans

HSA

FSA

Job summary

CesiumAstro is seeking a highly skilled Principal Electrical Engineer to lead the design, development, integration, test, and flight qualification of advanced spaceborne payloads.

The Unit Lead (Responsible Engineer) will manage AESA Ka-band modules, coordinate multidisciplinary teams, drive on-time delivery, and interface with customers and mission assurance.

Qualifications

• Requires a bachelor’s degree or higher in electrical engineering or related field.
• 9+ years of engineering experience in electronics hardware development.
• Hands-on with active phased array antennas and RF electronics.
• Experience with design for manufacturability and power/digital backplanes.

Responsibilities

• Lead the AESA Unit Lead across the full product lifecycle from concept to flight readiness.
• Coordinate a cross-functional team of RF, digital, power, mechanical, and software engineers.
• Own schedule accountability and ensure on-time delivery.
• Develop payload control schemes, interfaces, and firmware integration as needed.
• Manage flight qualification activities and environmental test planning.
• Prepare transition to volume production and customer-facing documentation.
• Communicate status and trade-offs to leadership and customers.

Skills

Active phased array antennas

Antennas and RF electronics

Power/digital support circuitry

EIRP testing

Leadership and mentoring

Systems engineering practices

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher in Electrical Engineering or related field

Job description

_ Please Note: To conform with the United States Government Space Technology Export Regulations, the applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., conditional resident, asylee or refugee (protected individuals as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

At CesiumAstro , we are developers and pioneers of out-of-the-box communication systems for satellites, UAVs, launch vehicles, and other space and airborne platforms. We take pride in our dynamic and cross-functional work environment, which allows us to learn, develop, and engage across our organization. If you are looking for hands-on, interactive, and autonomous work, CesiumAstro is the place for you. We are actively seeking passionate, collaborative, energetic, and forward-thinking individuals to join our team.

We are seeking a highly skilled Principal Electrical Engineer to lead the design, development, integration, test, and flight qualification of advanced spaceborne payloads.

This post focuses on the role of Unit Lead (aka Responsible Engineer) in our Phased Array product line, focusing on Ka-band Active Electronically Steered Arrays (AESAs).

The Unit Lead is responsible for both technical definition and execution of a new AESA product. This combines deep, multi-disciplinary technical accountability with responsibility for on-time schedule execution. The project may include the development of new active antenna modules, new RF and power/digital backplanes, new array control and power conversion, and/or new software features, coming together into a qualified, customer-ready product.

The Unit Lead is the leader of the multidisciplinary technical team, the primary point of contact for the program manager, and often a key interface point for our customers. Success in this role requires deep expertise in technical topics as well as project management, leadership, and communication in a fast-paced startup environment.

JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Serve as theAESA Unit Lead and primary technical point of contact for the box throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Lead theend-to-end engineering effortfor the box, including architecture, design, prototyping, integration, test, environmental qualification, and flight readiness.
• Coordinate and direct a team ofRF, digital, power, mechanical, thermal, software, and systems engineersto ensure consistent and timely technical execution.
• Hold schedule accountability for the box development.
• Develop and reviewpayload control schemes, internal data interfaces, command & telemetry architecture, and firmware/software integration as needed.
• Manage allflight qualification activities, including environmental test planning (thermal vacuum, vibration, shock, EMC), margin assessment, and final acceptance testing.
• Own the transition to volume production, including manufacturability, testability, and customer-facing documentation.
• Generate and maintain box-level documentation: requirements, ICDs, block diagrams, test plans, verification matrices, risk registers, and design reviews.
• Interface with spacecraft systems engineering, mission assurance, manufacturing, vendors, and test facilities.
• Driveroot cause analysis, anomaly resolution, and technical risk mitigation throughout development and test campaigns.
• Communicate status, technical trades, risks, and design decisions to internal leadership and external customers.

JOB REQUIREMENTS AND MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• 9+ years of engineering experience in electronics hardware development.
• Hands-on experience withrelated technologies such as active phased array antennas.
• Expertise in antennas and board-level RF electronics.
• Strong familiarity with power/digital support circuitry and design for manufacturability.
• Experience testing active antennas, including measuring EIRP and G/T.
• Leadership experience, including mentoring or leading multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Strong knowledge of systems engineering practices, requirements flowdown, verification/validation, and configuration management.
• Excellent communication skills with ability to present complex technical information to diverse audiences.

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE

• Proven experience executing or overseeingflight qualificationand environmental test campaigns (TVAC, vib/shock, EMC, radiation considerations).
• Experience managing hardware/software product development projects.
• Experience withradiation-tolerant design.
• Experience withhigh-rate manufacturing, rapid development cycles, and/or NewSpace ecosystems.
• Prior role as aResponsible Engineer, Technical Lead, IPT Lead, or Chief Engineeron flight hardware.
• Experience in high-frequency antenna design e.g. Ka band.
• Experience mentoring less-experienced project engineers and design engineers in associated discipline.
• High energy and a “get it done” attitude.

$150,000 - $182,000 a year

CesiumAstro considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, education/training, and key skills. Full-time employment offers include company stock options and a generous benefits package including health, dental, vision, HSA, FSA, life, disability and retirement plans.

CesiumAstro is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard torace, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected Veteran Status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Please note: CesiumAstro does not accept unsolicited resumes from contract agencies or search firms. Any unsolicited resumes submitted to our website or to CesiumAstro team members will be considered property of CesiumAstro, and we will not be obligated to pay any referral fees.