Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer – Trajectory Expert

Rocketlab; Littleton (CO); On-site; USD 135,000 - 175,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Health insurance

401(k)

Paid time off

Parental leave

Employee stock purchase program

Job summary

Rocket Lab in Littleton, CO, is seeking a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer II to join our Space Systems team and design trajectories for Earth orbit, lunar, and interplanetary missions. You will analyze ascent, orbit insertion, and maneuvers, and collaborate with cross-functional engineering teams to ensure mission success.

Required: Bachelor’s in Aerospace/Space Systems or related field, 8+ years in flight dynamics, Python, STK/GMAT, and U.S. citizenship per ITAR.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace, Space Systems, or an equivalent Engineering or Applied Physics degree.
• 8+ years of experience in mission design and flight dynamics.
• Knowledge of orbital mechanics including spaceflight dynamics, maneuver design, orbit determination, and Kalman filtering.
• Experience with STK, Astrogator, GMAT, Monte, Copernicus, or equivalent.
• Proficient in Python; experience with Git and Jira.
• U.S. citizenship is required for ITAR and program requirements.

Responsibilities

• Develop and analyze launch vehicle and spacecraft trajectories for Earth orbit, lunar, and interplanetary missions.
• Perform orbital propagation, rendezvous planning, and station-keeping analysis.
• Support mission design including launch window analysis, delta-V budgets, and contingency planning.
• Interface with flight software and GNC teams to validate guidance profiles.
• Generate and deliver trajectory data products for mission readiness reviews.
• Contribute to in-house simulation tools and flight dynamics infrastructure.
• Support real-time mission operations including anomaly response and post-launch data analysis.

Skills

Orbital mechanics knowledge

Mission design

Python programming

Git version control

Jira project management

US citizenship

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace/Space Systems or equivalent engineering/physics

Tools

STK

Astrogator

GMAT

Monte

Copernicus

Job description

Rocket Lab in Littleton, CO, is seeking a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer II to join our Space Systems team and design trajectories for Earth orbit, lunar, and interplanetary missions. You will analyze ascent, orbit insertion, and maneuvers, and collaborate with cross-functional engineering teams to ensure mission success.

Required: Bachelor’s in Aerospace/Space Systems or related field, 8+ years in flight dynamics, Python, STK/GMAT, and U.S. citizenship per ITAR.