Real-Time Controls Software Engineer — Space Systems

Cowboy Space Corp.; San Carlos (CA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 192,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.

Health, dental, vision insurance

401(k) retirement plan

Paid time off

10 holidays per year

Paid parental leave

Relocation assistance

Daily lunch in the office

Job summary

Cowboy Space Corp. is seeking a Controls Software Engineer to own the software control loop that keeps laser pointing accurately between moving platforms, in a real-time embedded environment.

You will translate control theory into robust software and own the system end-to-end. Ideal candidates have 3+ years in control systems or embedded software, strong Rust/C/C++ skills, and experience with real-time systems or HIL testing.

Qualifications

• 3+ years in control systems, robotics, or embedded software development.

Responsibilities

• Own the pointing and tracking control loop from design through on-orbit operations.
• Design, implement, and tune closed-loop controllers for optical links between moving platforms.
• Translate control theory into real-time embedded software in Rust.
• Perform stability analysis, closed-loop tuning, and performance characterization of control algorithms.
• Build simulation and analysis tools to model, validate, and iterate on control system behavior.
• Support hardware integration and hardware-in-the-loop testing of the sensing-to-actuation chain.
• Develop automated test frameworks to validate control performance across conditions.
• Collaborate with GNC, optics, avionics, and firmware teams to define interfaces.
• Investigate on-orbit/test anomalies and drive fixes across software/hardware boundaries.
• Develop fault detection, isolation, and recovery strategies.

Skills

Control systems

GNC

Embedded software

Rust

Real-time programming

Education

Bachelors in Aerospace Eng, Electrical Eng, Mechanical Eng, Robotics, CS

Tools

MATLAB/Simulink

Python tooling

Kalman filters

Job description

Cowboy Space Corp. is seeking a Controls Software Engineer to own the software control loop that keeps laser pointing accurately between moving platforms, in a real-time embedded environment.

You will translate control theory into robust software and own the system end-to-end. Ideal candidates have 3+ years in control systems or embedded software, strong Rust/C/C++ skills, and experience with real-time systems or HIL testing.