2025 Flight Dynamics Engineer

The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation’s space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space— delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you’ll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators. Join us and take your place in space.

The Enterprise Effects Division (EED) drives integration of Aerospace’s strategic capabilities across the national space enterprise. The division leverages a broad array of engineering disciplines against a dynamic portfolio of programs, customers, and national challenges. EED spans the capability lifecycle from concept and architecture design to performance assessment to application of space and space-enabled capabilities.

As a core component of EED, the Emerging Missions Flight Dynamics Department (EMFDD) provides flight mechanics expertise for the cislunar domain, multi-objective “traveling salesman” trajectory sequence generation, facility location optimization, and trans-atmospheric flight design for missiles, hyperglide vehicles, and reentry vehicles. Relevant skills include orbital mechanics, astrodynamics, trajectory design and optimization, and atmospheric flight modeling and simulation. The selected candidate will provide expertise for a wide range of customer flight mechanics needs, supporting analysis, research, and development requests. The work will require candidates to provide deep technical solutions while also collaborating with engineering partners to facilitate integrated solutions for our customers’ hardest problems. Customers will include defense, intelligence, and civil and commercial organizations.

Work Model

• This position will be a hybrid work model based in El Segundo, CA, Colorado Springs, CO, Chantilly, VA, or Albuquerque, NM with the expectation that the selected candidate works at least 4 days a week onsite, as the business needs allow. 

What You’ll be Doing:

Primary Support 

• Cislunar and exploration-class orbital mechanics analysis and trajectory optimization  

• Hypersonics, missiles, interceptors, and reentry vehicle trajectory design and optimization 

• Time-dependent Traveling Salesman Problems and Facility Location Problem analysis

• Astrodynamics and orbital mechanics analysis including orbit propagation and maneuver design and optimization for orbit transfer, station keeping, graveyard, disposal, and reentry events  

• Analysis of vehicles with chemical and/or electric propulsion  

• Evaluating contested missions applications for space systems to understand threat performance, assess vulnerabilities, and improve system resiliency  

• Developing Concepts of Operations (CONOPS), exploring Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs), and incorporating operational constraints into the design and maturation of space and near-space systems  

• Providing operational support for nominal launch and spacecraft deployment and transfer sequences, anomaly resolution, and on-call emerging events 

• Utilizing optimal control, flight mechanics, and computer science/algorithm development skills to create new capabilities to service customer requests as stand-alone services and/or ready-to-integrate submodules   

• Performing research and development and building new flight dynamics tools to cultivate and maintain a healthy and modern internal tool base 

• Leveraging external tools like ASSET, GPOPS-II, SNOPT, POST, OTIS, Copernicus, GMAT, EMTG, etc. where appropriate to augment internally developed capabilities  

Additional inter-department partnership collaborations opportunities: 

• Maneuver and orbit design, selection, and optimization for missions that support Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO) objectives with complex operational constraints 

• Trajectory design and optimization for launch vehicles and spacecraft for missions operating in LEO, MEO, HEO, GEO, and other earth-centric regimes

What You Need to be Successful

Minimum Requirements

• Master's or Phd degree from an accredited program in Aerospace/Aeronautical Engineering, Astronautical Engineering, Physics, Computer Science or Applied Mathematics or related discipline (pursuing or conferred within the last 12 months)
• 0 - 1 year of work experience.
• Proficien