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Spacecraft Electronics Engineer

Design and integrate electrical systems for Era-Node spacecraft autonomy payload.

  • Palo Alto
  • Posted Nov 9, 2026
INDUSTRYEngineeringElectrical Engineering

Responsibilities

  • Define electrical architecture, requirements, power budgets, and interface control documentation
  • Design and integrate payload power conditioning and monitoring
  • Bring up custom PCBAs and COTS electronics
  • Implement and verify command, data, and timing interfaces
  • Design flight and ground harnesses
  • Select components and materials for space environment
  • Build and maintain electrical ground support equipment
  • Develop and execute PCBA and payload electrical tests
  • Support acceptance testing and space environment qualification campaigns
  • Work with suppliers on fabrication and maintain schematics, traceability, and test procedures

Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, electronics engineering, or a closely related field
  • Experience in a spacecraft or space payload electronics

Nice to have: SpaceWire, RS-422, Ethernet, CAN, embedded interfaces, precision timing, PPS signals, camera interfaces, FPGA, embedded C/C++ development, test automation, radiation assurance, flight electronics manufacturing, hosted payloads, GEO missions, government space programs, anomaly resolution

Skills

power electronicsanalog circuit designdigital circuit designelectrical interfacesharness designEDA toolsoscilloscopeslogic analyzerspower supplieselectronic loadsspace hardware design practicesderatingradiation effectsgroundingshieldingelectromagnetic compatibilitymaterials selectionelectrical test equipmentdiagnosticsdocumentationconfiguration controlEDA toolsoscilloscopeslogic analyzerspower supplieselectronic loads

Full description

EraDrive builds autonomy software and hardware that let spacecraft see, decide, and act with minimal human control. Our spacecraft self-driving software has been demonstrated in orbit on NASA's Starling mission, and we are growing it into a hardware product family covering alternative positioning, navigation and timing (PNT), rendezvous, in-orbit inspection, and space domain awareness. The Role You will own the electrical design of Era-Node, EraDrive's spacecraft autonomy payload, from architecture and detailed design through implementation, qualification, integration, and delivery. Your scope includes payload power, custom boards, communication and timing interfaces, cabling and connectors, and ground electrical test infrastructure. This is a hands-on role: you will design circuits, bring up boards, troubleshoot hardware, and work with internal engineering teams, suppliers, and the host spacecraft team to deliver reliable flight units. What You Will Do - Define Era-Node's electrical architecture, requirements, power budgets, and interface control documentation, coordinating connections among cameras, processors, clocks, the host spacecraft, and the ground support equipment. - Design and integrate payload power conditioning and monitoring, including electrical protection and fault recovery. - Bring up custom PCBAs and COTS electronics, diagnosing and reworking as needed. - Implement and verify command, data, and timing interfaces, including clock distribution, sensor triggering, synchronization, and signal integrity, working closely with embedded software engineers. - Design flight and ground harnesses including specifying connectors, pinouts, shielding, and grounding while coordinating with mechanical and manufacturing teams. - Select components and materials for the space environment, with assessment of expected lifetime and performance. - Build and maintain electrical ground support equipment for system prototyping, assembly, integration, and hardware-in-the-loop testing. - Develop and execute PCBA and payload electrical tests. - Support acceptance testing and space environment qualification campaigns. - Work with suppliers on fabrication, while maintaining schematics, traceability, and test procedures across engineering and flight units. What You Bring - A degree in electrical engineering, electronics engineering, or a closely related field. - Demonstrated experience developing spacecraft or space payload electronics, including hands-on hardware integration, testing, and participation in environmental qualification or flight acceptance. - Strong practical skills in power electronics, analog and digital circuit design, electrical interfaces, and harness design. - Proficiency with EDA tools, board bring-up, and laboratory debugging using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, power supplies, and electronic loads. - Working knowledge of space hardware design practices, including derating, radiation effects, grounding and shielding, electromagnetic compatibility, and materials selection. - Experience developing electrical test equipment and procedures, and diagnosing problems across hardware, firmware, and software boundaries. - Clear technical documentation and communication, disciplined configuration control, and the ability to own engineering problems through resolution in a small team. Bonus - Experience with SpaceWire, RS-422, Ethernet, CAN, or other embedded interfaces. - Experience with precision timing, PPS signals, camera interfaces, FPGA-based logic, or embedded C/C++ development. - Experience developing circuits and custom interface PCBAs, from schematic to layout to fabrication and assembly. - Experience with test automation, radiation assurance, or flight electronics manufacturing and inspection standards. - Experience with hosted payloads, GEO missions, government space programs, or on-orbit commissioning and anomaly resolution.

Spacecraft Electronics Engineer at EraDrive | Referso Jobs