Senior Thermal & Structural Analyst - Lead FEA

CesiumAstro; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 193,000 - 236,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

HSA

FSA

Life insurance

Disability insurance

Retirement plans

Job summary

CesiumAstro, a leading space systems company in El Segundo, CA, seeks a Senior Staff Thermal Analyst to advance structural and thermal analysis methodologies. You will lead FEA tasks, verify designs, and collaborate with engineering, manufacturing, and quality teams to ensure mission-ready structures.

The role requires extensive experience in static/dynamic/thermal analyses, strong coupling between thermal and mechanical effects, and mentoring less experienced engineers.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree with 12–15 years of related experience (or Master’s 8–12 years; PhD 5–8 years).
• Applied knowledge of thermal analysis, heat transfer and thermal-structural interactions.
• In-depth knowledge of structural mechanics, FEA, and advanced verification methods.
• Extensive experience with static, dynamic, vibration, fatigue, fracture, buckling, nonlinear and thermal stress analyses.
• Understanding of GD&T, manufacturing processes, and structural qualification requirements.
• Creates innovative solutions for highly complex structural engineering challenges.
• Proficient with MS Office and engineering software tools.
• Experience with ANSYS, Abaqus, Nastran, HyperMesh, Creo, Windchill/SAP/Jira or equivalents.

Responsibilities

• Apply structural engineering principles to develop analysis methodologies and verification strategies across multiple programs.
• Evaluate load paths, stress distributions, fatigue life, and thermal-structural interactions to advance methodologies.
• Lead complex calculations, FEA analyses, nonlinear analyses, and design trade studies.
• Perform thermal analyses to evaluate heat transfer, temperature distributions and thermal-structural effects.
• Lead verification, qualification, validation and testing activities.
• Evaluate data, models, test results, and inspection findings to improve reliability.
• Guide root-cause investigations and engineering changes supporting product development.
• Correlate thermal models with test data for design improvements.
• Serve as a primary technical resource for structural and stress analysis across programs.
• Provide guidance through design reviews and engineering investigations.
• Mentor engineers and promote best practices in structural analysis.
• Advance methodologies and standards across multiple programs.
• Identify opportunities for improvement in analysis methods and tools.
• Lead initiatives to improve structural integrity and product reliability.

Skills

Structural analysis

Thermal analysis

FEA

Leadership

Problem solving

Communication

MS Office

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in aerospace/ mechanical/ civil engineering

Master’s degree in a related field

PhD in a related field

Tools

ANSYS

Abaqus

Nastran

HyperMesh

Creo

Windchill

SAP

Jira

Job description

CesiumAstro, a leading space systems company in El Segundo, CA, seeks a Senior Staff Thermal Analyst to advance structural and thermal analysis methodologies. You will lead FEA tasks, verify designs, and collaborate with engineering, manufacturing, and quality teams to ensure mission-ready structures.

The role requires extensive experience in static/dynamic/thermal analyses, strong coupling between thermal and mechanical effects, and mentoring less experienced engineers.