Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer

Socket.dev; Kent (WA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Medical insurance

Dental & Vision

401(k)

Paid time off

10 paid holidays per year

Parental leave

Relocation assistance

Office lunch

Job summary

Cowboy Space Corp. is seeking a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer to support the development, analysis, and validation of advanced aerospace systems.

This onsite role in Seattle WA combines mission design, flight dynamics, and autonomous control system development to advance space infrastructure. The ideal candidate has hands-on simulation and systems engineering experience, strong analytical skills, and familiarity with launch vehicle and spacecraft trajectory analysis, guidance profiles, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Space Systems, or Software Engineering, or equivalent Engineering or Applied Physics.
• Experience with orbital mechanics, classical dynamics, modeling, and simulation.
• Mission analysis with STK, Astrogator, GMAT, Monte, Copernicus, or equivalent.
• Python software development

Responsibilities

• Develop and analyze launch vehicle and spacecraft trajectories, including ascent, orbit insertion, and orbital maneuvers.
• Perform orbital propagation and station-keeping analysis for spacecraft operations.
• Support mission design including launch window analysis, delta-V budgets, and contingency planning.
• Interface with flight software and GNC teams to validate and optimize guidance profiles.
• Contribute to development of in-house simulation tools and flight dynamics infrastructure.
• Engage in multi-disciplinary vehicle systems investigations to motivate mission design, vehicle architecture, and analysis methodologies.
• Develop and evaluate flight termination system mission rules

Skills

Python programming

Orbital mechanics

Modeling & simulation

Mission analysis tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Space Systems, or Software Engineering, or equivalent Engineering or Applied Physics

Tools

STK

Astrogator

GMAT

Monte

Copernicus

Job description

Cowboy Space Corp. is building the infrastructure to power and connect the orbital economy. Our satellites operate in Low Earth Orbit to collect sunlight and enable a new class of capabilities—from powering on-orbit compute, to transmitting energy via infrared lasers (space-to-earth and space-to-space), to delivering secure, high-bandwidth optical data. By rethinking how energy and data are generated and distributed in space, we’re unlocking entirely new ways to operate both in orbit and on Earth.

Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt (co-founder of Robinhood), Cowboy Space Corp. is backed by leading investors and built by a team from top aerospace and defense organizations. We’re moving quickly to solve complex technical challenges and build a new category of space infrastructure.

About the Role:

We are seeking a highly motivated Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer to support the development, analysis, and validation of advanced aerospace systems. The ideal candidate combines strong analytical skills with hands-on simulation and systems engineering experience to support mission design, flight dynamics, and autonomous control system development. This position is located onsite in Seattle WA.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and analyze launch vehicle and spacecraft trajectories, including ascent, orbit insertion, and orbital maneuvers

• Perform orbital propagation and station-keeping analysis for spacecraft operations

• Support mission design including launch window analysis, delta-V budgets, and contingency planning

• Interface with flight software and GNC teams to validate and optimize guidance profiles

• Contribute to development of in-house simulation tools and flight dynamics infrastructure

• Engage in multi-disciplinary vehicle systems investigations to motivate mission design, vehicle architecture, and analysis methodologies

• Develop and evaluate flight termination system mission rules

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Space Systems, or Software Engineering, or an equivalent Engineering or Applied Physics degree.

• Experience with orbital mechanics, classical dynamics, modeling, and simulation

• Mission analysis with STK, Astrogator, GMAT, Monte, Copernicus, or equivalent.

• Python software development

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with launch vehicles, spacecraft, missiles, hypersonics, UAVs, or defense systems

• Orbit determination analysis with ODTK, Orekit, or equivalent

• Team and/or software project management experience

Compensation and Benefits

The salary range for this position is $150,000 – $200,000 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.