Senior Principal Software Engineer - TS​/SCI

Senior Principal Software Engineer - TS/SCI

Rocket Lab is the end-to-end space company building rockets, spacecraft, and critical subsystems that keep the world connected, protected, expand humanity's reach to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. We move fast, build real hardware for meaningful missions, and make the impossible routine. Come shape the future with us.

Rocket Lab's Space Systems team is responsible for every satellite and satellite component made by Rocket Lab: from complete satellites destined for missions to the Moon and Mars, to the individual components and subsystems that make up a satellite like solar panels, flight software, reaction wheels and star trackers, separation systems, radios, and more. Our Space Systems team is made up of engineers, technicians, and designers who design, create, and put together our own satellites for missions across the commercial, government, and defense sectors, or who build and assemble satellite hardware and software that supports other satellite missions.

Based out of our headquarters in Long Beach, CA, we are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Senior Principal Software Engineer to serve as the Chief Software Engineer for a major constellation program. In this pivotal role, you will lead the design, development, and delivery of scalable, reliable, and mission-critical software systems for space-based applications. With expertise in flight software, embedded systems, and ground software systems, you will collaborate with systems teams, software engineers, and stakeholders to ensure mission success.

If you have a passion for aerospace and defense, hold an active TS/SCI clearance, and thrive in fast-paced environments, this is your opportunity to make a tangible impact on national security and space exploration.

• Lead Software Architecture Design:Define and evolve the end-to-end software architecture for flight and ground systems, ensuring scalability, reliability, security, and mission success.
• Develop Flight Software:Design application software for spacecraft operating within Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) such as VxWorks, or embedded Linux, including hardware drivers for spacecraft sensors and actuators such as IMUs, Star Trackers, and Reaction Wheels.
• Build Ground Software Systems:Architect and deploy web-based ground software platforms for spacecraft operations, integrating flight and ground systems to support diverse mission profiles.
• Test and Validate Systems:Develop unit tests within a Continuous Integration (CI) framework and collaborate with hardware-in-the-loop test engineers to verify combined software and hardware functionality.
• Collaborate and Lead:Provide technical direction and mentorship to engineering teams, act as a trusted advisor to leadership, and partner with stakeholders to align software systems with mission requirements.
• Support On-Orbit Operations:Ensure software performance in harsh environments and contribute to mission-critical operations.

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science, or a related technical discipline.
• 15+ years of professional software development experience, including embedded systems and ground software.
• Proven expertise in architecting scalable and reliable software systems for aerospace or defense applications.
• Proficiency in CandC++ for embedded software development and python for testing.
• Experience with both DIO and AIO (Digital and Analog Inputs and Outputs).
• Experience with integrating hardware, including implementing ICDs, and debugging.
• Experience with deriving the Flight Software architecture from the electrical design including reading a master ICD list and/or schematics.
• Experience with RF ground to space communication.
• U.S. citizenship is required, due to program requirements

• Advanced degree in aerospace engineering, computer science, or a related field.
• Strong systems-level thinking with the ability to balance technical trade-offs across performance, security, and maintainability.
• Experience developing…