Propulsion Systems Engineer – Spacecraft Thrusters

Lanteris Space LLC; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 82,000 - 136,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) plan

Paid time off

Job summary

Lanteris Space Systems in Palo Alto, CA, seeks an engineer to develop propulsion systems for cutting-edge space missions. You will apply systems engineering to propulsion hardware, perform analyses, and help define test requirements for qualification and on-orbit performance.

The role emphasizes collaboration with power, thermal, and electronics teams, plus design and testing responsibilities. Strong emphasis on propulsion knowledge and teamwork.

Qualifications

• U.S. citizen or permanent resident requirement.
• BS degree in Physics, Engineering, or related discipline.
• A master’s degree may count toward two years of experience.
• Experience or coursework in electric and chemical propulsion, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, thermodynamics.

Responsibilities

• Apply engineering concepts to solve propulsion system challenges.
• Design bipropellant, monopropellant, cold gas, and electric propulsion systems.
• Perform subsystem analyses: propellant loading, plume, thruster alignment, and on-orbit performance.
• Specify propulsion hardware: tank sizing, thruster selection, performance, redundancy, fault management.
• Coordinate with power, thermal, and bus electronics engineers to meet requirements.
• Define and cascade subsystem test requirements to unit level.
• Support qualification and testing of propulsion systems.
• Demonstrate teamwork and project management capabilities.

Skills

Propulsion systems design

Subsystem analysis

CAD modeling

Thermal/fluid analyses

Project management

Team collaboration

Education

BS in Physics or Engineering

Masters counts toward experience

Tools

CAD software

Job description

Lanteris Space Systems in Palo Alto, CA, seeks an engineer to develop propulsion systems for cutting-edge space missions. You will apply systems engineering to propulsion hardware, perform analyses, and help define test requirements for qualification and on-orbit performance.

The role emphasizes collaboration with power, thermal, and electronics teams, plus design and testing responsibilities. Strong emphasis on propulsion knowledge and teamwork.