Spacecraft Thermal Engineer II Verified today
About Firefly Aerospace
Firefly Aerospace is a space and defense technology company on a mission to reliably and repeatedly launch, land, and operate space systems from Earth to the Moon and beyond. Headquartered in north Austin, Texas, Firefly is the first commercial company to launch a satellite to orbit with 24-hour notice and the first company to achieve a successful Moon landing.
The Role
Firefly Thermal Engineers apply advanced simulation and heat transfer expertise to solve complex spacecraft thermal challenges from concept development through flight operations. You will independently own subsystem thermal analyses, develop validated thermal models, and influence engineering decisions through high-quality analytical work.
Your Responsibilities
- Independently develop and maintain subsystem and vehicle-level spacecraft thermal models
- Own thermal analyses from model setup through documentation with minimal oversight
- Execute thermal trade studies supporting design, integration, testing, and mission operations
- Develop thermal control solutions including MLI, radiator sizing, heater strategies, coatings, and passive and active thermal control technologies
- Coordinate thermal environments with internal engineering teams and external customers
- Organize and support testing, including vehicle-level thermal vacuum testing
- Support the thermal control subsystem on console during launch operations
- Correlate analytical models using thermal vacuum and environmental test data
- Break large analytical efforts into actionable tasks while managing priorities across multiple programs
- Document analysis results for internal and customer design reviews
- Mentor entry-level engineers by reviewing models, analyses, and reports
- Identify model sensitivities, uncertainties, and technical risks while recommending mitigation strategies
- Contribute to process improvements, automation, and modeling best practices
Required Qualifications
- B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Physics, or related field
- Approximately 3-8 years of spacecraft or aerospace thermal analysis experience
- Strong experience with Thermal Desktop and related thermal analysis software
- Strong understanding of spacecraft thermal control systems
- Experience correlating analytical models with test data
- Working knowledge of Python and MATLAB
- Excellent technical communication skills
- Demonstrated ability to independently execute complex engineering analyses
Desired Qualifications
- M.S. degree
- Experience with ANSYS SpaceClaim, NX, or Simcenter
- Experience developing thermal test plans and coordinating thermal vacuum tests
- Familiarity with NASA spacecraft thermal standards
- Experience supporting spacecraft through integration and environmental testing