Senior Specialist, Systems Engineer - Space Vehicle

Requirements:

• Bachelors degree in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related STEM field and at least 6 years of relevant experience; or a graduate degree and at least 4 years of relevant experience; alternatively, at least 10 years of prior related experience in lieu of a degree.
• Ability to obtain a DoD Secret security clearance.
• Preferred: Experience in systems engineering for government, civil, or commercial satellite programs, or developing spacecraft and other complex aerospace systems at the subsystem, system, or vehicle level.
• Preferred: Experience with spacecraft integration and testing, environmental qualification, launch site operations, or resolving on-orbit anomalies.
• Preferred: Familiarity with Model-Based Systems Engineering, requirements management tools, configuration management, and system-level performance analyses such as thermal, structural, reliability, image, or end-to-end performance analysis.
• Preferred: Knowledge of space vehicle design considerations across orbital regimes, including radiation, space charging, thermal, telecommunications, power, propulsion, and disposal.
• Preferred: Familiarity with mission analysis and trades, including concepts of operations, day-in-the-life analysis, coverage maps, and revisit rates, as well as the relationships among space, ground, and launch segments.
• Preferred: Experience with requirements management, interface control, system integration, verification and validation, and technical baseline management across the product lifecycle.
• Preferred: Ability to collaborate across engineering teams, communicate technical issues clearly to leadership and customers, and contribute in a multi-site development environment; an active security clearance is also preferred.

Responsibilities:

• Support space vehicle systems engineering for satellite programs from concept development through design, integration, testing, launch, and mission operations.
• Develop, decompose, allocate, and manage spacecraft system requirements down to subsystem and component levels.
• Coordinate with multidisciplinary teams spanning systems, payload, avionics, flight software, mechanical, thermal, power, propulsion, guidance and control, integration and test, and mission operations.
• Help develop and maintain the space vehicle architecture, technical baseline, and interface definitions.
• Conduct system-level trades, performance analyses, and technical assessments related to spacecraft capability, cost, schedule, reliability, and risk.
• Support system integration, verification, validation, and test planning to demonstrate compliance with program requirements and mission objectives.
• Participate in technical reviews, including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, and FRR, and communicate technical status to internal and external stakeholders.
• Identify, assess, and help mitigate technical risks and opportunities associated with spacecraft design, manufacturing, integration, environmental testing, and launch vehicle interfaces.
• Work with program management, production, quality, supply chain, and subcontractor teams to support space vehicle build and delivery.
• Lead small technical efforts when needed and guide less experienced engineers while supporting disciplined engineering practices and continuous improvement.

Technologies:

• Support
• LESS
• Security

More

We are L3Harris, a defense technology company delivering end-to-end solutions across space, air, land, sea, and cyber domains in support of national security. Our Spectral Solutions division is hiring a Senior Specialist, Systems Engineer – Space Vehicle to support missile warning and missile defense programs and other critical space-based missions. The role contributes to technical planning, system architecture, requirements traceability, integration, verification, and lifecycle support across multidisciplinary teams. This is an onsite position in Palm Bay, Florida, with a 9/80 schedule that provides every other Friday off. We foster an inclusive, engaging workplace focused on professional growth, work-life success, community commitment, and excellence. We are an equal opportunity employer and maintain a drug-free workplace; pre-employment substance testing and background checks may apply where permitted by law.

last updated 43 week of 2026