Senior Spacecraft Thermal Engineer II — Shape Spacecraft

Rocketlab; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 132,000 - 255,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee Stock Purchase Program

Medical, Dental, Vision plans

Paid vacation & holidays

401(k) with company match

Equity grant eligibility

Job summary

Rocket Lab, based in Long Beach, CA, seeks a Senior Spacecraft Thermal Engineer II to lead thermal design, analysis, testing, and validation for space vehicles. The role emphasizes modeling, design trade studies, and collaboration with test and design engineers to improve thermal performance.

The candidate will perform model validation, support leadership deliverables, and work with NX Space Systems Thermal, ANSYS, SINDA, and THERMICA, bringing strong communication and independent work

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in aerospace or mechanical engineering; 8+ years in aerospace thermal engineering.
• U.S. citizenship is required due to program requirements.

Responsibilities

• Complete thermal modeling and analysis of vehicles
• Conduct thermal design trade studies that balance margins, resources, risk, cost, schedule
• Identify and resolve thermal design, acceptance, and performance issues for space vehicle components and assemblies
• Design and execute thermal tests for space vehicle components and assemblies
• Perform thermal model validation using test and in-flight data
• Liaise with program and engineering staff on thermal design and test matters

Skills

Thermal analysis

Heat transfer

Thermal design

Python

MATLAB

Team collaboration

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in aerospace or mechanical engineering

Master's or PhD in aerospace or mechanical engineering

Tools

NX Space Systems Thermal

ANSYS

SINDA

THERMICA

Teamcenter

Job description

Rocket Lab, based in Long Beach, CA, seeks a Senior Spacecraft Thermal Engineer II to lead thermal design, analysis, testing, and validation for space vehicles. The role emphasizes modeling, design trade studies, and collaboration with test and design engineers to improve thermal performance.

The candidate will perform model validation, support leadership deliverables, and work with NX Space Systems Thermal, ANSYS, SINDA, and THERMICA, bringing strong communication and independent work