Space Infrastructure Software Engineer

Summary

Join Loft Orbital as a Space Infrastructure Software Engineer and contribute to the scaling of satellite operations for a diverse fleet of missions. You will collaborate on automated satellite operations, ground and flight software, and on-orbit problem-solving. The team ensures the reliable and standardized operation of Loft's space infrastructure, focusing on satellite bus stability, the Hub, and Loft-owned payloads. Your work will be foundational to Loft's business model, offering opportunities to work on various systems, from mission control system interaction to onboard satellite code execution. You will also have the chance to become a Flight Director, responsible for the fleet's health and safety. This role requires a blend of software development expertise, cross-stack capabilities, and a willingness to learn and adapt within a dynamic space environment.

Requirements

• Experience in developing software (either as a software engineer or with significant scripting/automation experience)
• Able to work across a broad software and hardware “stack”--our work involves ground-based automation, space-based automation, the intersection between that automation, ground & flight software, and hardware
• Willing & interested to be trained as a satellite controller and flight director (including being in the on-call rotation)
• Experience with Python and Git
• Pragmatic: you will be building for long-term reliability and scalability and also asked to find short/medium-term solutions
• Openness to being challenged and working outside of your comfort zone
• Willingness to be accountable, autonomous, and take full ownership of projects

Responsibilities

• Improve the reliability and scalability of our space infrastructure by building the software systems that operate our satellites autonomously
• Build tools, systems, and software libraries which support other teams' usage of the space infrastructure
• Scale our satellite operation software to support a growing and heterogeneous satellite fleet
• Work with product teams to drive product improvements based on operations and integration needs
• Improve and maintain technical aspects of SatDevOps Academy, our internal company-wide satellite operations training program
• Work as a rotating Flight Director, overseeing and managing incident response for the satellite fleet

Preferred Qualifications

• 3+ years software engineering experience (rather than scripting experience)
• Familiarity/experience with Docker, Lua, Linux, CI/CD, test engineering, reliability engineering
• Experience as a satellite operator

Benefits

• 100% company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance option for employees and dependents
• Flexible Spending (FSA) and Health Savings (HSA) Accounts offered with an employer contribution to the HSA
• 100% employer paid Life, AD&D, Short-Term, and Long-Term Disability insurance
• Flexible Time Off policy for vacation and sick leave, and 12 paid holidays
• 401(k) plan and equity options
• Daily catered lunches and snacks in office
• International exposure to our team in France
• Fully paid parental leave; 14 weeks for birthing parent and 10 weeks for non-birthing parent
• Carrot Fertility provides comprehensive, inclusive fertility healthcare and family-forming benefits with financial support
• Off-sites and many social events and celebrations
• Relocation assistance when applicable