Principal Orbital Analyst Security Clearance

Principal Orbital Analyst with Security Clearance

• Clearance Jobs Workforce Solutions

Position Overview The Senior/Principal Orbital Analyst / Flight Dynamics Engineer will lead the design, analysis, and on-orbit support of spacecraft flight dynamics and mission analysis across a variety of commercial and defense programs. This individual will serve as a technical leader, collaborating across multiple engineering disciplines to develop mission architectures, flight dynamics algorithms, simulation environments, and operational capabilities while mentoring junior engineers.

• Own mission- and system-level analysis to ensure spacecraft designs meet or exceed performance requirements.
• Develop and maintain high-fidelity simulation environments supporting mission architecture development and mission analysis.
• Lead development of mission concepts of operations (CONOPS).
• Develop, improve, and utilize analytical tools to evaluate spacecraft and mission performance against mission objectives.
• Design and analyze satellite constellation architectures, including orbital regimes, plane spacing, phasing strategies, and deployment concepts.
• Perform trade studies evaluating coverage, contact opportunities, mission lifetime, regulatory compliance, and mission feasibility.
• Serve as the Flight Dynamics technical lead working closely with Systems Engineering, Flight Software, Avionics, Mechanical, Thermal, Manufacturing, and Mission Operations teams.
• Present technical analyses during internal and customer design reviews.
• Support spacecraft mission operations, orbit maintenance, and anomaly investigations using telemetry and flight data.
• Mentor junior engineers while helping establish engineering standards, best practices, and team processes.
• Develop and validate flight dynamics software in partnership with Mission Operations, Software Engineering, and Spacecraft Subsystem teams.

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, or a related technical discipline. Master's degree preferred.
• 6+ years of experience in spacecraft Guidance, Navigation & Control (GNC), Flight Dynamics, Orbit Analysis, Mission Analysis, or related disciplines.
• Strong understanding of orbital mechanics and spacecraft subsystems.
• Experience using industry-standard flight dynamics tools such as STK, GMAT, or equivalent.
• Experience analyzing spacecraft dynamics, control systems, propulsion performance, trajectory design, and constellation geometry.
• Familiarity with NASA ORDEM, NASA BUMPER, NASA DAS, and NASA MEM3 is highly desirable.
• Experience with conjunction assessment and collision avoidance analysis.
• Strong Python programming skills.
• Experience using Git or other version control systems.
• Demonstrated technical leadership experience and the ability to mentor junior engineers.
• Excellent analytical, communication, presentation, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work effectively in a collaborative, cross-functional engineering environment.
• Must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. Security Clearance. U.S. Citizenship is required. Active clearance is preferred.

• Competitive salary
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with company benefits
• Paid Time Off (PTO)