Spacecraft Thermal Design Engineer

K2 Space; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 215,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Paid time off

Medical/dental/vision coverage

Life insurance

Paid parental leave

Job summary

K2 Space is hiring a Thermal Design Engineer to drive detailed thermal design of spacecraft subsystems. You will run analyses at component and spacecraft levels, exploring thermal management strategies and validating them through test campaigns.

The ideal candidate brings hands-on experience with thermal testing (TVAC, cycling) and first-principles analytics, using Thermal Desktop, Ansys IcePak, and Python for automation. Base salary ranges with equity are offered.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience with radiative and conductive thermal modeling of spacecraft systems using Thermal Desktop or similar tools.
• 3+ years of experience with selection, sizing, and design of thermal control hardware including heat pipes, heaters, SSM, OSR, thermal straps, thermal paints, tapes, MLI, TEC, etc.
• 1+ year of experience with thermal cycling and thermal vacuum testing including predictions, setup, instrumentation and thermal model correlation.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain thermal models for spacecraft and sub-components using Thermal Desktop and Ansys.
• Set up and execute thermal testing from development to qualification.
• Collaborate with experienced thermal engineers to learn modeling practices and support weekly tasks.

Skills

Thermal modeling

Thermal analysis

Thermal testing

Python automation

Heat pipe design

Tools

Thermal Desktop

Ansys IcePak

Python

Job description

K2 Space is hiring a Thermal Design Engineer to drive detailed thermal design of spacecraft subsystems. You will run analyses at component and spacecraft levels, exploring thermal management strategies and validating them through test campaigns.

The ideal candidate brings hands-on experience with thermal testing (TVAC, cycling) and first-principles analytics, using Thermal Desktop, Ansys IcePak, and Python for automation. Base salary ranges with equity are offered.