Varda Space
Senior Mechanisms Engineer - Payloads
$140K–$179K
El Segundo, California, United States · Senior · Full-time · Posted Sep 17, 2026
- Experience
- 4+ years; no alternatives stated.
- Education
- BS/BEng in Mechanical, Aerospace, Mechatronics, or related field.
- Visa sponsorship
- Must be a U.S. person (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual) authorized to work in the U.S.
About the job
Develops and owns electromechanical payload flight hardware and multi-payload missions from concept through testing, launch, reentry, and recovery.
What you'll do
- Lead mechanism, structural, thermal/fluid interface, and electromechanical assembly design; perform related analyses.
- Build, integrate, instrument, and test prototypes and flight hardware; lead mission operations and post-flight teardown.
- Coordinate cross-functional mission development, define requirements and verification plans, and mentor junior engineers.
What they ask for
- BS/BEng in Mechanical, Aerospace, Mechatronics, or a related field.
- 4+ years designing, integrating, testing, and troubleshooting electromechanical hardware.
- Strong mechanical expertise plus breadth in at least one adjacent discipline.
- Experience delivering hardware in rigorous environments; ability to independently define tasks, manage schedules, and deliver integrated hardware.
Nice to have
- Prior full-cycle ownership of space flight hardware.
- Experience with aerospace environmental testing (vibration, TVAC, EMI/EMC), relevant hardware integration, customer-facing technical communication, or an active Secret or Top Secret clearance.
Pay
$140,333 - $179,314 per year (base salary)
Tools
Python, MATLAB, FEA
Model-written summary · the original posting is authoritative