Senior EO/IR Image Processing Engineer

Rocket Lab USA; Chantilly (VA); On-site; USD 162,000 - 243,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401(k)

Job summary

Rocket Lab USA in Chantilly, VA seeks a Senior Algorithm Engineer II focused on EO/IR image processing for space payloads. You will develop, validate, and deploy advanced algorithms, collaborating with machine learning, optical design, and space-vehicle modeling teams to deliver responsive sensing capabilities.

The role emphasizes detecting and tracking low-SNR targets, building real-time implementations, and refining algorithms across projects.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in a technical field with demonstrated image processing/EO/IR experience.
• Strong experience designing, implementing, testing, and optimizing image processing and CV algorithms for EO/IR sensors.
• Proficient in Python; capable of high-performance implementations in C/C++.
• Experience with computer vision topics: object detection/tracking, 3-D modeling, image stabilization/registration.
• Ability to communicate results clearly to technical and government stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Develop, validate, and deploy EO/IR image-processing chains for space payloads.
• Improve modeling/simulation frameworks to generate mission imagery for ML training.
• Apply deep-learning approaches to detect and track low-SNR objects in EO/IR data.
• Collaborate with software/firmware teams to produce real-time implementations.
• Document performance results for government customers and present findings in meetings.
• Travel or off-site work as needed.

Skills

Python

Image processing

EO/IR systems

Object detection

Tracking

C/C++

Mathematics

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

PhD

Tools

Simulink

PyTorch

Job description

Rocket Lab USA in Chantilly, VA seeks a Senior Algorithm Engineer II focused on EO/IR image processing for space payloads. You will develop, validate, and deploy advanced algorithms, collaborating with machine learning, optical design, and space-vehicle modeling teams to deliver responsive sensing capabilities.

The role emphasizes detecting and tracking low-SNR targets, building real-time implementations, and refining algorithms across projects.