Senior Thermal Architect – Aerospace & Defense

Divergent; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 141,000 - 194,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity plan

Discretionary bonus opportunities

Paid vacation, sick time, holidays

Year-end shutdown

Job summary

Divergent is seeking a Senior Thermal Engineer to be the technical authority for its aero-structures portfolio, driving thermal optimization and performance from concept to delivery. You will own the full life cycle, ensure high-performance systems, and challenge requirements with government and industry partners.

You will define thermal architectures, develop strategies for heat rejection and insulation, and lead correlations with test data across development stages, including environmental

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering with a thermal sciences focus.
• Minimum 8 years of experience in thermal analysis, design, or management.
• Excellent written and verbal communication with cross-functional stakeholders including government customers and prime contractors.
• Strong analytical and practical mindset—navigating ambiguity and driving structured clarity across thermal, structural, and systems boundaries.
• Demonstrated excellence in thermal requirements definition, verification planning, and risk management across terrestrial & space thermal development.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the thermal design authority for Divergent’s A&D Structures team, owning thermal architecture from concept through qualification.
• Define, negotiate, and validate thermal requirements and budgets with government and industry customers.
• Develop thermal management strategies and lead internal trade studies including heat rejection, insulation, and material selection.
• Guide thermal aspects of design reviews and establish standardized thermal maturity metrics and qualification criteria.
• Build and maintain high-fidelity thermal models and drive correlation with test data throughout the product lifecycle.

Skills

Thermal analysis

Thermal design

Communication skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Analytical mindset

Education

Bachelor’s in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

Tools

ANSYS Fluent

ANSYS Thermal Desktop

Icepak

Star CCM+

PowerFlow

Job description

Divergent is seeking a Senior Thermal Engineer to be the technical authority for its aero-structures portfolio, driving thermal optimization and performance from concept to delivery. You will own the full life cycle, ensure high-performance systems, and challenge requirements with government and industry partners.

You will define thermal architectures, develop strategies for heat rejection and insulation, and lead correlations with test data across development stages, including environmental