Senior Flight Software Engineer – Spacecraft & Optics

Observable Space; Los Angeles (CA); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive pay

Equity options

Hybrid work

Unlimited PTO

Health coverage

Cutting-edge tools

Mission-driven culture

Inclusive team

Job summary

Observable Space in Los Angeles is seeking a Senior Flight Software Engineer to design, develop, and maintain flight software for spacecraft and telescope platforms. You will work with electrical, mechanical, optical, and software engineers to deliver reliable, fault-tolerant systems for ground-based and space deployments.

The role emphasizes hands-on coding in C/C++, real-time systems, and interfaces with hardware.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in CS/CE/AE or equivalent.
• 5+ years of experience in software engineering, embedded systems, or systems-level development.
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ or similar low-level languages.
• Experience developing software for embedded or hardware-integrated systems.
• Understanding of real-time systems, concurrency, and performance optimization.
• Familiarity with communication protocols and networking fundamentals.
• Strong debugging and problem-solving skills.
• Effective communicator and collaborator.
• Demonstrated passion for aerospace, robotics, or complex systems.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop flight software for spacecraft and telescope systems, including command, control, and data handling (C&DH).
• Build and maintain software that interfaces directly with hardware components, sensors, and onboard subsystems.
• Architect systems for high reliability, fault tolerance, and long-duration autonomous operation.
• Implement communication protocols for telemetry, command uplink/downlink, and system coordination.
• Collaborate with electrical and hardware teams to ensure seamless integration between software and physical systems.
• Support hardware bring-up, integration, and debugging at the hardware/software boundary.
• Develop and implement fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR) mechanisms.
• Support system testing, including simulation, hardware-in-the-loop (HIL), and validation activities.
• Participate in and contribute to design reviews (PDR, CDR, etc.) and internal documentation.
• Provide engineering support during integration, testing, and system validation.

Skills

C/C++ programming

Embedded software development

Real-time systems knowledge

Debugging and problem-solving

Effective communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or equivalent

Tools

RTOS

Embedded Linux

HIL testing

Job description

Observable Space in Los Angeles is seeking a Senior Flight Software Engineer to design, develop, and maintain flight software for spacecraft and telescope platforms. You will work with electrical, mechanical, optical, and software engineers to deliver reliable, fault-tolerant systems for ground-based and space deployments.

The role emphasizes hands-on coding in C/C++, real-time systems, and interfaces with hardware.