Varda Space
Propulsion Engineer II - Hardware and Bus Systems
$120K–$153K
El Segundo, California, United States · Full-time · Posted Sep 9, 2026
- Experience
- 3+ years of hands-on propulsion or fluid systems design, build, and/or test for spacecraft or launch vehicles; equivalent professional experience may be considered for the degree requirement (typically 1–3+ years).
- Education
- B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline; equivalent professional experience considered.
- Visa sponsorship
- Must be a U.S. person permitted to access the company’s export-controlled technology without an export license; must be lawfully authorized to work in the U.S.
About the job
Own and develop spacecraft propulsion hardware and systems across Varda’s fleet, including design, analysis, testing, operations, and upgrades.
What you'll do
- Maintain propulsion technical baselines and documentation; define requirements and architecture for current and future vehicles.
- Design, analyze, and test propulsion hardware; produce performance analyses and automate analysis and data-review workflows.
- Support operational vehicle upgrades, in-flight operations, hardware issue investigations, and cross-functional engineering work.
What they ask for
- B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline; equivalent professional experience considered.
- 3+ years of hands-on propulsion or fluid systems design, build, and/or test experience for spacecraft or launch vehicles.
- Working knowledge of flight fluid system hardware and ability to read P&IDs.
- Proficiency with CAD tools and PLM software; experience authoring or executing ground-test or flight-campaign procedures.
Nice to have
- Python or spreadsheet automation; exposure to ANSYS, NASTRAN, or equivalent FEA tools.
- Experience with spacecraft propulsion architectures, propellants, operational campaigns, fluid modeling, or GD&T per ASME Y14.5.
Pay
USD 119,543-$152,749 per year (base salary)
Tools
Python, CATIA, SolidWorks, NX, ANSYS, NASTRAN, GFSSP, REFPROP
Model-written summary · the original posting is authoritative