Spacecraft Test Engineer: Vibration & TVAC Expert

Xona; Burlingame (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Xona is seeking a skilled Spacecraft Test Engineer to own the mechanical and environmental testing across the spacecraft development lifecycle, from R&D through first-article qualification. You will lead test campaigns, develop fixtures and instrumentation, and ensure data-driven design improvements across teams.

The role requires hands-on work with flight hardware, strong analysis skills, and the ability to communicate findings clearly to mechanical, structures, thermal, and systems engineers.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field.
• 3+ years of engineering experience with hardware testing and verification.
• Experience developing and executing mechanical or environmental tests on complex hardware.

Responsibilities

• Own planning and execution of vibration testing for first-article spacecraft.
• Design and build test fixtures, instrumentation, and data acquisition systems.
• Coordinate with cross-functional teams to translate test results into design changes.
• Lead post-test inspections, data analysis, and reporting.

Skills

Mechanical testing

Environmental testing

Test planning

Cross-functional collaboration

Data analysis

Root-cause analysis

Hands-on hardware work

Technical writing

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical / Aerospace Engineering

Tools

CAD

Python

MATLAB

LabVIEW

Job description

Xona is seeking a skilled Spacecraft Test Engineer to own the mechanical and environmental testing across the spacecraft development lifecycle, from R&D through first-article qualification. You will lead test campaigns, develop fixtures and instrumentation, and ensure data-driven design improvements across teams.

The role requires hands-on work with flight hardware, strong analysis skills, and the ability to communicate findings clearly to mechanical, structures, thermal, and systems engineers.