Imagery Scientist; EO

Imagery Scientist (EO)

NGA MAVEN PROGRAM – ELECTRO-OPTICAL – GEOINT – EXPERT – KEY POSITION

Electro‑optical imagery tells a story — but only to someone who understands the sensor, the collection geometry, the phenomenology, and how to turn raw pixels into analytically actionable products. As the EO Imagery Scientist on NGA Maven, your expertise directly shapes the quality of AI/ML training data that informs national security decisions.

The Imagery Scientist is the subject matter expert on electro‑optical imagery, providing technical direction and handling acquisition and preparation of EO imagery to meet government‑specified quality and standards. Developed solutions are informed by phenomenology limitations and advantages of sensors and platforms. Responsibilities include integrating emerging EO sensors into Maven pipelines, building tiling and conversion pipelines, generating pre‑labels, and curating imagery for government priorities.

• Integrate emerging EO sensors into Maven data pipelines; assess metadata, format, and schema differences and recommend ETL adaptations
• Execute daily EO imagery curation: assess image quality using NIIRS and information‑theoretic metrics, prioritize acquisitions per government direction, convert files to required formats (specified for unclassified and classified deliverables)
• Tile full‑size imagery into precise pixel dimensions or geospatial boundaries, accounting for orthorectification to ensure spatial accuracy at tile edges
• Generate pre‑labels from intelligence reporting, machine‑derived observations, and human observations – conforming to defined ontology standards to cue human labelers
• Collaborate with the SAR Imagery Scientist to provide coincident EO imagery aligned with SAR collection areas and temporal windows
• Oversee weekly processed imagery deliveries (high‑volume curated imagery deliverables on a regular cadence); execute ad‑hoc quick‑turn deliveries as needed

Mission Impact: The EO data you curate, tile, and pre‑label becomes the training corpus for NGA Maven's AI/ML models. The precision of your science determines the quality of model outputs that support real‑world intelligence operations.

Geo Owl Impact: As a key position, your technical performance defines Geo Owl's reputation for EO expertise on Maven and strengthens our standing as a mission‑first geospatial partner.

Your Growth: You'll work at the cutting edge of applied EO science – integrating pre‑IOC sensors, developing novel preprocessing pipelines, and expanding expertise into computer vision and ML data workflows in a high‑consequence environment.

• Integrate emerging EO sensors and platforms into Maven data pipelines; assess and adapt ETL processes for metadata, format, and schema differences
• Develop and implement mathematical conversion models to transform data labels across imagery types (PNG, NITF) and between orthorectified and non‑orthorectified imagery
• Execute tiling and preprocessing of full‑size raw imagery to specified formats and dimensions while maintaining geospatial accuracy and metadata integrity
• Analyze and assess image quality and sensor metadata; curate acquisitions in alignment with government‑directed priorities using NIIRS and information‑theoretic metrics
• Generate pre‑labels from intelligence reporting and machine‑ and human‑derived observations conforming to defined ontology standards
• Identify and implement curation methods – including NLP‑based intelligence extraction and automated machine techniques – to maximize high‑value imagery yield
• Monitor and prioritize data holdings to support data diversity needs (geographic regions, temporal windows, metadata and scene characteristics)
• Develop, test, and evaluate new EO algorithms and methodologies using advanced processing tools and cloud‑based solutions

• Active TS/SCI clearance
• Minimum 18 experience points required
• 4+ years as an EO expert with deep understanding of collection, phenomenology, image formation process, and exploitation products
• Experience exploiting the electromagnetic spectrum (electro‑optical) to determine the occurrence and…