GNC Engineer

Astrobotic Technology, Inc. is a space robotics company that seeks to make space accessible to the world.  The company’s suite of lunar landers delivers payloads to the Moon for companies, governments, universities, non-profits, and individuals.  The company is also developing advanced space robotics capabilities such as terrain relative navigation, mobile robotics for lunar surface operations, and reliable computing systems for mission-critical applications.  Originally spun out of Carnegie Mellon University in 2007, Astrobotic is pioneering affordable planetary access that promises to spark a new era of exploration, science, tourism, resource utilization, and mining.  Astrobotic’s headquarters is in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with a second location in Mojave, California.

As a GNC Engineer at Astrobotic, you will design, implement, and test core algorithms for Astrobotic’s autonomous precision landing and hazard avoidance subsystems and integrate them with the spacecraft guidance, navigation, and control architecture. Astrobotic is engineering the hardware and software that will safely guide spacecraft to the Moon (and beyond) and land them with unprecedented precision and control, enabling a broad range of high-impact science and commercial missions. This role is instrumental in accomplishing our mission and will help develop these solutions, ensure their correctness, and insist that our navigation system is capable of more than its individual components.

Applicants should have a general knowledge of robotics with specific knowledge of one or more related topics including: software engineering, perception, state estimation, guidance, navigation and control, real-time control, simulation, LiDAR processing, or computer vision.

Note: This position may be filled at multiple levels, including Engineer II, Senior, Principal, etc. depending on the candidate’s experience.

Job Responsibilities:

• Software development of robotic state estimation, guidance, and control systems
• Development and tracking of flight requirements for sensor systems
• Working closely with other subject matter experts at NASA, university groups, and commercial clients
• Communicating with internal and external clients and the research community
• Contributing to novel research and research proposals

Required Skills & Qualifications:

• Experience with guidance, navigation, and control for aerial or space systems
• Knowledge of fundamental robotics mathematics and algorithms
• Experience with software design and implementation
• Ability to work autonomously, learn on the fly, and take initiative in a fast-paced environment
• Proficiency in communication and technical writing
• B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, Robotics, or a related quantitative field

Desired Skills & Qualifications:

• Experience with C/C++, python, and version control software
• Experience with Monte Carlo methodology and experimentation
• Experience with Image-Aided Navigation and Kalman Filtering
• Experience with sensor processing for IMUs, Cameras, or LiDAR
• Experience with robotics applications such as GPS-denied navigation, localization, SLAM, nonlinear optimization, kalman filtering, or state estimation with factor graphs
• Experience with computer vision
• Experience with unmanned aerial systems
• Experience with robotics simulation environments

Salary Range: $80,000 - $150,000

The base salary range represents the low and high end of the anticipated salary range for this position. The actual base salary offered for this position will depend on numerous factors including individual performance, business objectives, and the candidates professional experience.  Base salary is just one component of Astrobotic’s competitive total rewards strategy.

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you 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.

Astrobotic Technology, Inc. does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.

If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request to contact@astrobotic.com.