Staff GNC Engineer (Guidance) Verified today
About Inversion Space
Inversion builds advanced reentry systems to deliver next-generation capabilities from space. The mission is to make Earth radically more accessible by turning Low-Earth Orbit into an on-demand logistics domain. Inversion's 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 Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, Inversion works with the U.S. Space Force and NASA on next-generation space-based defense and logistics.
What You'll Do
As Staff GNC Engineer (Guidance), you will own the guidance architecture for Inversion's lifting-body reentry platform, a highly maneuverable, highly accurate vehicle that is an industry first. You will deliver high performance in the face of real-time mission updates.
- Own the guidance architecture for a maneuvering reentry vehicle from concept through flight
- Develop guidance algorithms that replan trajectories onboard in response to real-time mission updates
- Build and exercise 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations to develop, stress, and validate guidance performance
- Develop plant models of vehicle and subsystem dynamics to support algorithm design and simulation fidelity
- Work with the broader GNC, simulation, and mission design teams to close vehicle-level performance
- Mentor engineers across the GNC team
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience
- Typically 9+ years of applicable experience developing and testing guidance or GNC algorithms and systems
- Experience with modern convex optimization methods for guidance (e.g., successive convexification, sequential convex programming, lossless convexification)
- Experience developing and exercising 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations
- Strong fundamentals in flight mechanics, optimal control, and trajectory optimization
- Proficiency in programming languages such as MATLAB, Python, or C++ for simulation and analysis
- Demonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Capable of working in a dynamic, fast-paced startup environment
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance
Desired Qualifications
- Master's or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience
- Experience with real-time onboard optimization solvers (e.g., ECOS, CVXGEN, OSQP, or custom solvers) in compute-restricted environments
- Experience with atmospheric entry guidance methods (e.g., numerical predictor-corrector approaches)
Work Location
This position is on-site at Inversion HQ in Playa Vista, California.