Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer, Orbits R&D

As a Senior Flight Dynamics Engineer, you will work in a small team of dedicated engineers responsible for the Flight Dynamics and Mission Planning for Planet’s fleet of satellites. The Flight Dynamics disciplines of this team include mission design, orbit determination, maneuver design and execution (with propulsion and differential-drag), and conjunction assessment & mitigation. Mission Planning is concerned with optimal scheduling of imaging and contacts for Planet’s Dove, SkySat, Pelican, and Tanager constellations. This operations research problem has a direct impact on fulfilling the business needs for the world’s largest heterogeneous constellation of Earth Observation satellites. Your role will involve developing and automating tools to assess mission design trade-offs that will define the future of Planet's constellations.

This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to work from our Berlin office 3 days per week.

• Research, design, and architect new software solutions for managing Mission Design needs for Planet's increasingly diverse fleets of satellites.
• Work on complex optimization problems with your knowledge of flight dynamics and software engineering.
• Develop and automate tools to assess mission design trade-offs that will define the future of Planet's constellations.
• Collaborate with mission planning, flight dynamics, and ground software teams to improve the operations of existing fleets and enable future missions.
• Perform first-principles analysis to optimize scheduling of imaging and contacts for Planet's diverse satellite constellations.
• 10+ years of relevant work experience
• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, physics or related technical field
• Expertise in orbital mechanics and space mission operations
• Deep knowledge in software development, in C++ and Python
• Experience carrying out first-principles analysis and operationalizing MVP solutions
• Excellent written and verbal technical communication skills

What Makes You Stand Out:

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