Senior Thermal Protection & TPS Integration Engineer

Castelion; Rio Rancho (NM); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Castelion is seeking multiple Senior Thermal & TPS Integration Engineers to design and deliver thermal protection solutions for Castelion's long-range hypersonic strike vehicles. You will work hands-on with multidisciplinary engineering teams to design, analyze, build, and validate TPS across the vehicle in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities include leading TPS architecture, performing thermal-structural analyses, and coordinating with structures, materials, and manufacturing teams to

Qualifications

• Bachelor's/Master's/PhD in Aerospace/Mechanical/Materials related field.
• 5+ years in thermal protection system design, analysis, validation for aerospace or high-temperature applications.
• Strong background in aerothermal environments, heat transfer, and high-temperature materials.
• Experience designing TPS for flight vehicles (heat shields, control surfaces, internal insulation).
• Familiar with TPS materials: ceramics, carbon-carbon, ablatives, insulating blankets.
• Experience with seals, gaps, and interface design in high-temperature, moving or constrained systems.
• Proficiency in thermal and structural analysis tools (ANSYS, MATLAB, or equivalent).
• Experience with high-temperature testing methods (arc-jet, furnace, or similar).
• Experience with hardware build, test, and troubleshooting in a lab or flight hardware environment.
• Strong problem-solving mindset, thriving in a fast-paced, hardware-rich, high flight cadence environment.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop TPS across the vehicle, including heat shields, acreage TPS, and leading-edge protection systems
• Design TPS for control surfaces, including elevons, seals, and moving interface solutions that maintain performance under thermal and mechanical loads
• Develop internal thermal protection solutions, including insulators, blankets, and standoff systems to protect avionics and structures
• Lead the architecture and integration of TPS with primary structure, mechanisms, and subsystems, including attachment methods, gaps, and strain isolation
• Perform thermal and thermal-structural analyses to ensure performance under extreme aerothermal heating and transient environments
• Work closely with structures, materials, aerothermal, GNC, and manufacturing teams to ensure seamless system integration
• Develop and evaluate materials and configurations, including ceramics, carbon-carbon, ablatives, and insulating materials
• Conduct tolerance analysis and assess thermal expansion, deformation, and interface behavior
• Support prototyping, assembly, and hardware bring-up, including troubleshooting and root cause analysis of TPS performance issues
• Define and execute qualification and environmental test plans, including arc-jet, furnace, and flight testing
• Optimize designs for mass, thermal performance, durability, and manufacturability
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to best practices in TPS design and integration
• Partner closely with program leadership to make technical trades aligned with mission success

Skills

Strong problem-solving mindset

Mentor junior engineers

Thermal and structural analysis

Education

Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD in Aerospace Engineering

Tools

ANSYS

MATLAB

Job description

Castelion is seeking multiple Senior Thermal & TPS Integration Engineers to design and deliver thermal protection solutions for Castelion's long-range hypersonic strike vehicles. You will work hands-on with multidisciplinary engineering teams to design, analyze, build, and validate TPS across the vehicle in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities include leading TPS architecture, performing thermal-structural analyses, and coordinating with structures, materials, and manufacturing teams to