Varda Space
Senior Spacecraft Mission Software Engineer
El Segundo, California, United States · Senior
Sponsorship not specified$169k-$216kDetected 1 day ago
PythonC++DockerKubernetesAnsibleCI/CDAvionicsTest AutomationLeadershipFiber Optics
About the role
- About Varda Low Earth orbit is open for business.
- Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure, from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules.
- From life-saving pharmaceuticals to more powerful fiber optics, there is a world of products used on Earth today that can only be manufactured in space.
Responsibilities
- Develop and maintain high-reliability services for telemetry ingestion, scaling, distribution, and commanding.
- Deliver operator-grade UIs and dashboards that optimize "ops time" and reduce cognitive load across integration, test, and on-orbit operations phases.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, math, physics, engineering or equivalent technical experience in safety critical software.
- 5+ years of experience in the development of spacecraft or similar safety critical software.
- Expertise with development in Python, along with a strong understanding of the language concepts.
- Hands-on experience with CI/CD, dependency/build systems, and infrastructure-as-code.
Nice to have
- Docker/Kubernetes
- release management, phased rollouts, and operational readiness for controlled networks.
- Proficiency in C++, Ansible, and/or NiceGUI.
- Experience with DAQ and closed-loop control (lab/test control environments).
- Prior work on CI/testing/simulation/data tools integrated with flight software teams.
- Experience with requirements, test, and certification artifacts from safety-critical or certified workflows.
- Knowledge of ground systems standards
- security in mission networks.
Compensation
- Leveling and base salary is determined by job-related skills, education level, experience level, and job performance.
- Offer compensation also includes the ability to receive stock options under the Company's Equity Incentive Plan.
- $169,000 - $216,000 annually.
- Substantial incentive equity in a fully funded space start-up
- $20/pay period cell phone reimbursement
Benefits
- Flexible PTO policy + 12 paid holidays
- 100% company-paid Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance plans for employees and dependents with FSA and employer-matched HSA options
- $120/month wellness reimbursement for gym and fitness expenses
- 12 weeks of parental leave (with supplemental disability leave for CA mothers)
- Family building, pregnancy, parenting and menopause benefits via Maven Clinic
- Sponsored One Medical memberships for employees and their dependents
- Substantial incentive equity in a fully funded space start-up
- 401(k) retirement plan with 6% employer match (immediately vested)
- $20/pay period cell phone reimbursement
- Varda offers a comprehensive benefits package designed to support health, financial well‑being, and a high‑quality workplace experience.
- Below is an overview of what full‑time employees receive (at this time, interns receive a subset of benefits):
Company info
- Low Earth orbit is open for business.
- Varda's W-Series vehicles are built, designed, and operated by Varda in-house, including the pharmaceutical processing payloads, the capsules, the C-PICA heat shields, and the satellite buses.
- Varda is accelerating innovation in the orbital economy by creating both the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth.
- Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind.
- Our team is uniquely suited to accomplishing this goal, with leadership and staff comprised of veterans from SpaceX, Blue Origin, major pharmaceutical companies and Silicon Valley.
- Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with significant backing from world class investors including Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, Caffeinated Capital, General Catalyst, and Also Capital.
- Varda is headquartered in El Segundo, California, where we have offices and a production facility where our vehicles, equipment, and materials are built, integrated, and tested.
- Varda also has offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, AL.
- Join Varda, and work to create a bustling in-space ecosystem.
- (Job Responsibilities)
- The Mission Software team is responsible for Varda's critical ground segment software, and the platform it runs on which enables spacecraft operations.
- We operate at the intersection of telemetry and commanding, data acquisition and distribution, mission control interfaces, simulation and test automation, with reliable deployment across lab, test range, and mission operations environments.
- You'll work hands-on with flight software, avionics, RF/ground systems, and mission ops.
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This listing is sourced directly from Varda Space's careers page and normalized into a canonical job model.