Mechanical Engineer | Solar Array Deployable Structures Verified today

About Cowboy Space Corp

Cowboy Space Corporation is building infrastructure for space-based solar energy. We design modular, scalable satellites that collect sunlight in Low Earth Orbit to transmit energy via infrared lasers, power high-performance computing clusters, and provide secure optical data transport. Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt and backed by Index Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and others, Cowboy Space has raised approximately $365 million.

The Role

As Mechanical Engineer for Solar Array Deployable Structures, you will own the large deployable structure that supports and positions the solar array. This is a mechanisms-first, hands-on role: you will architect and own the deployment mechanism along with its actuation, latching, and stowage, and design the structural system to make a very large deployed structure stiff, light, and reliable. You own this hardware end to end, from concept and analysis through ground testbeds, qualification, and on-orbit deployment.

You will work closely with structures, manufacturing, guidance and control (GN&C), power, avionics, propulsion, and software teams to deliver an integrated array. We need strong deployable-mechanism background paired with solid structural analysis skills, someone who moves quickly, iterates often, and takes full ownership of hardware that directly determines whether our spacecraft gets the power it needs on orbit.

Responsibilities

• Own the design of the deployable structure's mechanism from concept through flight, including actuation, deployment sequencing, latching and locking at full extension, and stowage and launch restraint.
• Design and analyze deployment kinematics, actuation, synchronization, and end-of-travel latching; quantify deployment reliability, force and torque margin, and jam resistance.
• Design mechanism details including bearings, guides, drives, dampers, and release devices, with attention to tribology, space-rated lubrication, and repeatable, low-shock deployment.
• Perform structural analysis of deployed and stowed structure: deployed stiffness and fundamental frequency, buckling and stability, strength, and thermal distortion; design to meet stiffness and pointing requirements.
• Design interfaces to the solar array and supporting hardware, balancing structural stiffness against operational loads and dynamics.
• Design, build, and operate ground testbeds and dev rigs, including gravity-offload deployment fixtures for a very large structure, to characterize the mechanism, validate deployment, and de-risk the flight design.
• Develop and execute deployment, life cycle, structural static and modal, vibration, thermal-vacuum, and qualification and acceptance test programs to verify flight-worthiness.
• Drive design-for-manufacturing of long, precision structural elements - tolerances, straightness, and repeatability - and work with suppliers to ensure high-quality, scalable production.
• Author and maintain drawings, interface control documents, analysis reports, test procedures, and release and configuration records.
• Diagnose and resolve mechanism and structural anomalies during integration and test, applying root-cause analysis and implementing corrective actions.
• Partner with structures, GN&C, power, avionics, propulsion, and software teams to ensure the array integrates seamlessly within the overall spacecraft architecture, including low-frequency flexible-body dynamics.
• Embrace a fast-paced development environment, driving quick design cycles, hardware builds, and test campaigns to accelerate the program schedule.

Basic Qualifications

• BS or MS in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field
• 3+ years of experience designing and analyzing deployable mechanisms and/or precision mechanical hardware in aerospace or high-performance environments
• Strong mechanism fundamentals: kinematics, actuation, springs and stored energy, motors and drives, bearings, latches, tribology, and deployment reliability
• Solid structural fundamentals: stiffness, buckling and stability, strength, and structural dynamics of slender or lightweight structures
• Hands-on experience building and testing mechanisms, including deployment testing
• Experience taking hardware from concept through build and test, with hands-on integration and test experience
• Proficiency with CAD (e.g., NX, SolidWorks, or similar)
• Experience working in fast-paced, hardware-focused development environments

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience designing deployable booms, masts, or large deployable structures for solar arrays, antennas, or similar
• Experience with composite structures: design, analysis, layup, bonding, and joint design; composite fabrication and test
• Experience with large or flexible-blanket solar arrays, including deployment, tensioning, and stowage
• Experience designing and operating gravity-offload or deployment test rigs for large or long structures
• Experience designing for space environments (thermal, vibration, vacuum) and background in spacecraft mechanisms, structures, or deployables
• Familiarity with structural dynamics of large flexible structures and their interaction with GN&C, including low-frequency modes, pointing, and jitter
• Experience with space-rated lubrication, tribology, and mechanism qualification
• Knowledge of aerospace standards (MIL-SPEC, NASA-STD, ECSS) and spaceflight hardware qualification and acceptance margins
• Startup or early-stage hardware experience; comfort operating with significant technical ambiguity

Compensation and Benefits

Salary range: $100,000 - $300,000 annually. Base salary depends on job-related skills, experience, qualifications, and internal equity.

• Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance for employees and eligible dependents
• 401(k) retirement savings plan
• Paid time off
• 10 paid holidays per calendar year
• Paid parental leave
• Relocation assistance if applicable
• Daily lunch in the office and fully stocked kitchen with beverages and snacks

ITAR Requirements

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), applicants must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.