Senior Mission Operations Engineer - Ground Segment

At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. Vast is developing next-generation space stations to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Using an incremental, hardware-rich and low-cost approach, Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station.

Haven Demo's 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world's first commercial space station when it launches, followed by additional Haven modules to enable permanent human presence by 2030. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time.

If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.

Vast is looking for a Senior Mission Operations Engineer to become a foundational member of the Ground Segment group within the  Mission Operations team and support planning and execution of Vast missions.

This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

Responsibilities:

* Take extreme ownership of large impact initiatives working with engineers across disciplines to support the development of spacecraft operations & ground operations procedures, flight rules, products & processes, culminating in the safe & successful operations of a newly launched spacecraft

* Provide technical and operational leadership as the operations expert in planning for and execution of pre-flight testing and checkouts of ground systems to ensure spacecraft and ground systems are ready for flight

* Assist with leading the operations of Vast's crewed and uncrewed missions for vehicle commissioning, on-orbit operations, anomaly resolution and final deorbit of the spacecraft

* Perform deep-dive analysis of vehicle & ground system telemetry and deliver informed summaries as well as recommendations to mission stakeholders for further review & analysis

* Formulate and lead the execution of workflows facilitating improvements to processes & systems with a focus on advancing Vast's Mission Operations while maintaining Vast's commitment to excellence

* Strategize plans for and lead efforts to iteratively improve the Mission Systems, Mission Operations Software and other ground processes and collaborate with the Mission Systems Engineering & Ground Software Engineering teams to implement them

* Work closely with Mission Management to ensure customer requirements are translated to a Concept of Operations that balances all needs

* Mentor & coach junior Mission Operations Engineers, offering guidance and recommendations to ongoing workflows

Minimum Qualifications:

* Bachelor's degree in aerospace, mechanical, software engineering, or other engineering discipline

* 5+ years of experience in the operation of complex systems

* Demonstrated ability to work cross-functionally with other engineering disciplines

* Demonstrated ability to to critically think in high stress environments and rapidly evolving situations

* Ability to disseminate critical engineering & technical information effectively and clearly

* Strong verbal and written communication skills

* Strong demonstrated technical leadership ability

* Willing to support 24/7 operations during mission critical phases

Preferred

Skills & Experience:

* Experience in human spaceflight mission operations

* Master's degree in a technical field

* 3+ years working in a spacecraft design, build, and test environment

* Technical knowledge in spacecraft systems engineering (avionics, propulsion, attitude control, communications, orbital mechanics, life support systems, thermal and power control systems)

* Technical knowledge in Space-to-Ground Communication Systems (RF, Ground Stations, Modems, Antenna Systems)

* Experience building from scratch a system, process and team to perform complex operations of an aerospace system (launch vehicle, satellite, crew capsule)

* Software Engineering Skills (C++, Golang, Java script, React, Software Architecture, Databases, Cloud)

* Matlab or Python/Octave Proficiency

Proficient at using the command line and scripting languages

* Strong Technical Writing skills

* Strong mentorship and leadership skills

Additional Requirements:

* Ability to travel up to 20% of the time

* Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones

Pay Range:

* Senior Mission Operations Engineer: $137,

* Staff Mission Operations Engineer: $162,000 - $230,000

Pay Range:
California

$137,000—$230,000 USD

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of…