Inversion

Inversion

Senior Propulsion and Energetics Thermofluids Engineer

Playa Vista, California, United States · Senior

Work authorization required$137k-$193kDetected 11 days ago
SparkComplianceSupply ChainLogisticsANSYSFEACFDThermal AnalysisGD&TMechanical DesignAerospace EngineeringCommunication

About the role

  • These systems open the door to new ways of testing, delivering, and operating at hypersonic speeds.
  • Inherently dual-use, our technology is built to meet urgent national security needs while laying the groundwork for future commercial applications.
  • As a Senior Propulsion and Energetics Thermofluids Engineer at Inversion, you will report to the Head of Test, Propulsion & Energetics.

Responsibilities

  • Lead the design and development of vacuum chamber and heat exchanger cooling systems tailored to our high energy plasma test environment. This includes detailed mechanical design with executable drawings and technical specifications.
  • Lead high-fidelity, transient thermal analysis including 3D conjugate heat transfer (CHT) modeling, aerodynamic heating boundary conditions, and internal radiative/conductive heat transfer.
  • Drive design trades across performance, manufacturability, schedule, and cost.
  • Own the sizing, selection, and structural interface design between the test facility and thermal protection systems (TPS) and internal insulation materials
  • Own CAD models, drawings, release packages, and bill of materials for prototype and flight-like hardware.
  • Support prototype design, hands-on integration, fit checks, and issue resolution during build.
  • Provide additional mechanical tooling and mechanism design bandwidth for test activities as needed.
  • Work closely with vehicle, manufacturing, test, supply chain, and technician teams to bring designs from concept through fabrication and integration.
  • Partner with outside vendors and suppliers to source parts, review manufacturability, and accelerate development.
  • Lead the design and development of vacuum chamber and heat exchanger cooling systems tailored to our high energy plasma test environment.

Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or equivalent technical experience.
  • 5+ years of experience in thermal design, modeling, and analysis of high-temperature systems.
  • Experience producing engineering drawings and applying standard dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) per ASME Y14.5.
  • Expertise in industry-standard thermal analysis software, such as Thermal Desktop, ANSYS Thermal, or equivalent tools.
  • Strong foundational knowledge of multi-physics heat transfer (conduction, radiation, high-speed convection) and thermodynamics.
  • Proven ability to operate independently, make high-consequence technical decisions under uncertainty, and establish company-wide technical standards.
  • Direct experience with designing or operating large-scale vacuum systems.
  • Direct experience with industrial facility mechanical design and process engineering.

Compensation

  • The California annual base salary for this role is currently $137,000 - $193,000.

Company info

  • Conduct thorough thermal and fluid analyses on industrial-scale equipment
  • Strong practical mechanical design skills related to industrial systems, mechanisms, high thermal-load systems, and user interfaces.
  • High familiarity with CAD software, such as Siemens NX.
  • Inversion builds advanced reentry systems to deliver next-generation capabilities from space.
  • Our mission is to make Earth radically more accessible by turning Low-Earth Orbit into an on-demand logistics domain.
  • We see space not as a destination, but as a platform - one that unlocks unprecedented speed and global reach.
  • Our spacecraft are designed to deliver payloads anywhere on Earth in under an hour, operating through extreme reentry conditions and landing with high precision.
  • Backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, and working with partners such as the U.S. Space Force and NASA, Inversion is pushing the boundaries of what's possible in space-based defense and logistics.
  • In this role, you will be the primary technical authority on vacuum chamber systems for a hypersonic plasma wind tunnel.
  • You will design and develop the mechanical structures and devices to activate a vacuum system and its requisite heat exchanger systems for a high-energy test bed to expand Inversion's depth in hypersonic and reentry material testing.
  • Required Qualifications
  • Demonstrated experience taking complex thermal systems through the complete lifecycle from conceptual design through hardware testing.

Equal opportunity

  • Inversion provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability.
  • Inversion collects and processes personal data in accordance with applicable data protection laws.

Visa & Work Authorization

  • citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U
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This listing is sourced directly from Inversion's careers page and normalized into a canonical job model.