Job Description

Astroscale UK is looking for an experienced Senior Mission Operations Engineer to join our team in Harwell. We require an additional person to join our team to take an active role in all phases of Astroscale's current and future missions, such as ELSA-M and COSMIC.


This position offers a great opportunity for someone who is looking to take the next step in their career, as the responsibilities cover a wide variety of tasks that would normally be split between the traditionally separated roles of Spacecraft Operations Engineers, Spacecraft Controllers, Analysts, Mission Manager, Operations Preparation Engineers and System Engineers. The successful candidate will be expected to perform at a high level across a broad range of activities and mission phases.


We are looking for a candidate with a significant wealth of knowledge and experience in all aspects of both operations preparation activities and mission operations. Work may include involvement in multiple missions, from the operations aspects of feasibility studies; contribution to Space Situational Awareness projects with academic, industrial, government agency and defence ministry partners; mission development from phase 0/A through rehearsals, LEOP and mission execution, to end of life operations; and ongoing development of mission control facilities and processes.


There is a lot of potential for the right person to make a lasting impact on how Astroscale employs novel operations concepts and technologies to operate a growing fleet of missions within a small and focussed team. Initiative, innovation and the ability to rapidly see ideas through from conception to implementation are essential. An understanding of industry standards, best practice and requirements engineering will be advantageous.


The candidate will be expected to contribute to multiple projects simultaneously, taking a pro-active approach to their time and task management.


This is predominantly a 9-to-5 role with a hybrid office- and home-based working pattern. However, there will be periods when longer days are required, as well as needing to be on-site in the MCC for consecutive days or weeks, such as when we are executing a critical mission phase.

Responsibilities

Act as an operations technical lead for missions and projects. Provide guidance and mentoring to less experienced team members via collaborative involvement in ongoing projects and missions. Perform routine and critical real-time spacecraft operations. Identify, define and potentially develop operational tools for efficient and safe operations. Act as Mission Manager, SOE, Mission Planning, and SpaCon as required during operations for all mission phases. To ensure robustness and redundancy in our small operations team, all members are expected to rotate roles continually. Develop and participate in operations support functions, e.g. planning and scheduling processes, on-call rota, coordination with spacecraft engineering, flight dynamics and ground systems teams, ground station providers, etc. Develop, validate and maintain and execute mission operations procedures, system validation tests, and operations software tools and scripts. Prepare spacecraft user manuals, mission operations plans, and other documentation. Provide operations expertise at system, subsystem and unit level, supporting ongoing mission development, bid proposals and other activities as required. Help to prepare and deliver mission operations training and SATSIM rehearsal campaigns. Contribute to the development of mission operations concepts, identifying functional needs across space and ground segments to fulfil the mission design. Contribute to Operations Preparation Team activities, including operability requirements processes, operations concept development, FDIR and flight software functionality analysis and implementation. Contribute to mission review cycles (PDR, CDR, ORR, etc), reliably predicting and addressing operational concerns during the mission development process. Propose and develop operational solutions to enable a small team of operations engineers to control multiple in-flight spacecraft with minimal workload overhead. The ability to envisage novel operational approaches will be required. Perform health and performance trend analysis at system, sub-system and unit level. Investigate spacecraft anomalies and participate in anomaly resolution process. Participate in occasional 24/7 shift during critical mission phases and ongoing on-call rotations.

Essential Skills

University degree in a relevant engineering discipline. 5-10 years of demonstrable satellite industry experience, preferably in real-time spacecraft operations as part of a flight control team operating a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) mission through the complete life cycle. Comprehensive knowledge of satellite subsystems, in particular AOCS/GNC or OBDH would be an asset. Familiarity with the operation of mission control systems, in particular procedure development, monitoring and control, mission planning, on-board software management, configuration management and simulator facilities. Experience of satellite performance monitoring and reporting, including anomaly analysis and resolution in liaison with industry partners. Ability to operate without error in a calm and disciplined manner during high stress situations. Ability to logically identify problems, perform root cause analysis and implement appropriate solutions in a timely manner. Detail orientated and able to work using own initiative with limited supervision, as well as alongside other team members. Able to conceptualise and deliver novel spacecraft operations concepts to meet the demands of Astroscale's multiple parallel projects and missions with a small team of engineers. An effective English language communicator at all levels with skills to CEFR Level B2 - Independent User or TOEIC 700+.

Desired Skills

Familiarity with mission control systems, preferably SCOS-2000 based. Experience with systems engineering aspects of spacecraft operations. Experience of formation-flying or close-proximity satellite operations will be advantageous. Familiarity with operations preparation tools. Knowledge of flight dynamics and orbital mechanics. Familiarity of relevant ECSS standards relating to Ground Systems and Operations.

Benefits

Competitive base salary Opportunity to work with a highly talented, diverse & dynamic international team with cutting edge technology Flexible working around core hours in a friendly and supportive environment Optional 9/75 working pattern Hybrid working available (dependent on individual role requirements) 25 days holiday (increasing yearly up to a maximum of 28 days) + 8 days Bank Holiday Life insurance and long-term sick pay Private healthcare (taxable benefit) Relocation allowance Visa sponsorship for employees considered New state of the art office and cleanroom facility Regular social events

Location

Astroscale UK (Harwell)

About Astroscale

We aim to deliver cutting edge technologies that will become part of routine commercial space operations by 2030.



Astroscale is the first private company with a vision to secure the safe and sustainable development of space for the benefit of future generations, and the only company dedicated to in-orbit servicing across all orbits. Founded in 2013, we are developing innovative and scalable solutions across the spectrum of in-orbit servicing missions, including End of Life services, Active Debris Removal, In-situ Space Situational Awareness and Life Extension Services, to create sustainable space systems and mitigate against the hazardous build-up of debris in space.



Astroscale is an Equal Opportunities employer and embraces a diverse workforce. All qualified applicants, including minorities, women and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Note to recruitment agencies: Astroscale operates a preferred Supplier List, and we do not accept unsolicited agency approaches. Please do not forward candidate CVs or details in response to this advert, or to any Astroscale employee.