Senior Thermal Engineer for AI Satellite Cooling

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP; Bastrop, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX in Bastrop, TX is seeking a Senior Thermal Engineer focused on fluids analysis for Starmind satellites. You will own conjugate heat transfer and thermal-fluid analysis of cold plates, heat exchangers, and radiator channels and the system 0-D/1-D network that sizes the cooling loop.

Collaborate with mechanical, manufacturing, and test teams to drive design margins, predict performance, and automate analysis workflows; occasional travel and extended hours may be required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering.
• 1+ years of professional experience in fluids, CFD, or thermal analysis.

Responsibilities

• Own conjugate heat-transfer (CHT) and thermal-fluid analysis of high-performance cold plates, heat exchangers, and radiator channels for STARMIND satellites
• Own the system 0-D/1-D thermal-fluid network that sizes and balances the cooling loop: flow split, ΔP budget, loop ΔT, pump operating point
• Drive cooling-loop architecture trades with hardware and vehicle-level thermal teammates
• Co-evolve geometry, materials and processes with hardware owners to find mass producible, efficient thermal solutions
• Predict component and system performance under wide range of flow and thermal conditions
• Own pre-test prediction, test design, and model-test correlation for fluid component and integrated thermal tests
• Automate analysis workflows for re-running trades as designs and boundary conditions change

Skills

Fluids analysis

Thermal engineering

CFD

1+ year experience

Conjugate heat transfer

Education

Bachelor’s degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering

Master’s degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering

Tools

STAR-CCM+

ANSYS Fluent/CFX

Siemens NX

Icepak

Flotherm

Python scripting

Job description

SpaceX in Bastrop, TX is seeking a Senior Thermal Engineer focused on fluids analysis for Starmind satellites. You will own conjugate heat transfer and thermal-fluid analysis of cold plates, heat exchangers, and radiator channels and the system 0-D/1-D network that sizes the cooling loop.

Collaborate with mechanical, manufacturing, and test teams to drive design margins, predict performance, and automate analysis workflows; occasional travel and extended hours may be required.