Senior Spaceflight Trajectory Dynamics Engineer

Rocketlab; Littleton (CO); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k)

Stock Purchase Program

Paid vacation

Paid parental leave

Job summary

Rocket Lab in Littleton, CO seeks a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer I to design and analyze trajectories for Earth orbiting, lunar, and interplanetary missions, collaborating with Systems, Ground Software, Electrical, Avionics, and other teams.

You will solve complex problems under time pressure, perform mission analysis, validate guidance profiles, and contribute to in-house dynamics tools. US citizenship required for ITAR; Colorado base pay range is listed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace, Space Systems, or an equivalent Engineering or Applied Physics degree.
• 5+ years of experience in mission design, flight dynamics.
• Demonstrated knowledge of orbital mechanics, including spaceflight dynamics, maneuver design, orbit determination, and Kalman filtering.
• Mission analysis with STK, Astrogator, GMAT, Monte, Copernicus, or equivalent.
• Python software development.
• Git version control, or an equivalent version control system.
• Jira software project management or equivalent.
• U.S. citizenship is required, due to program requirements

Responsibilities

• Develop and analyze launch vehicle and spacecraft trajectories, including ascent, orbit insertion, and orbital maneuvers.
• Perform orbital propagation, rendezvous planning, 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.
• Generate and deliver trajectory data products and flight dynamics support for mission readiness reviews.
• Contribute to development of in-house simulation tools and flight dynamics infrastructure.
• Support real-time mission operations including anomaly response and post-launch data analysis.

Skills

Orbital mechanics

Python

Git

Jira

5+ years experience

Kalman filtering

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace/Space Systems or equivalent

Tools

STK

Astrogator

GMAT

Monte Carlo

Copernicus

ODTK

Orekit

Job description

Rocket Lab in Littleton, CO seeks a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer I to design and analyze trajectories for Earth orbiting, lunar, and interplanetary missions, collaborating with Systems, Ground Software, Electrical, Avionics, and other teams.

You will solve complex problems under time pressure, perform mission analysis, validate guidance profiles, and contribute to in-house dynamics tools. US citizenship required for ITAR; Colorado base pay range is listed.