Associate Director, SDA Astro Scientist (TS/SCI) {S}

ARKA Group L.P. (“ARKA”) is an advanced technologies company serving the U.S. military, intelligence community, and commercial space industry delivering next-generation solutions to support the national security space enterprise. Built on more than six decades of excellence, ARKA brings modern approaches and a culture of innovation to the challenges of today.

Join the ARKA team to learn how Beyond Begins Here. Discover your next career opportunity now!

Position Overview:

This position is for an Associate Director SDA Astro Scientist with extensive experience researching and developing cutting edge solutions for Space Domain Awareness (SDA), Rendezvous Proximity Operations (RPO), and Space Control. You will support ARKA’s growth in these areas through internal and contract R&D, software development and deployment to operations, and the mentoring of junior and mid-level engineers and scientists that are eager to learn more in the space domain. This position highlights complete end-to-end visibility by developing innovative new concepts, building them into a prototype solution, and then ultimately deploying them into active operational environments. 

This position supports a hybrid-style work location, where the applicant may be able to work at home, or at the office location, as available work allows. 

We offer generous relocation benefits for eligible candidates.

Candidates may be considered for sign on bonuses consistent with skills and experience levels.

Responsibilities:

• Working with multiple teams of software engineers, algorithm developers and researchers to implement space traffic monitoring, space object dynamic modeling and prediction, and validation of SDA sensor data 
• Managing and growing a team of Astro engineers
• Growing the SDA/Space Control portfolio with support the ARKA executive team 
• Identifying new customers in the RPO community and theorizing innovative concepts to win new contracts 
• Serving as Tech Lead / Principal Investigator for several SDA projects that require deep technical knowledge and creativity 
• Leading a technical team to develop innovative new algorithms and approaches to leapfrog current state-of-the-art capabilities 
• Representing ARKA at conferences either as a technical presenter, conference chair, and/or through submission of technical publications 
• Interfacing with customers to understand their most pressing space security challenges, decomposing the challenges into ambitious yet achievable projects, and directing/coaching a team to realize the solution 
• Building a world-class SDA/RPO team by mentoring, upskilling, and hiring top talent 

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s in aerospace engineering, physics, mathematics, or relevant fields 
• At least 15 years of experience and knowledge in astrodynamics, orbit estimation, space object characterization, filtering, and/or signal processing 
• Experience researching and developing applications for SDA
• Experience supporting RPO missions
• Experience leading technical projects and supervising & mentoring software developers
• Experience with prototyping and developing SSA/SDA solutions in Java, Python, and/or MATLAB
• Experience growing and supporting a team of engineers and scientists
• Experience writing winning proposals
• TS/SCI U.S. Government Security Clearance

Preferred Qualifications:

• PhD or MS in Aerospace Engineering, Physics, Mathematics, or relevant fields
• Peer Reviewed Publications in aerospace engineering journals (e.g., Journal of Acta Astronautica, Journal of Guidance Control, and Dynamics, etc.) or Conference Papers and Proceedings at relevant conferences (e.g., AIAA and AMOS)
• Experience developing and operating SDA / Proximity Operations sensors 
• Experience developing and operating robotic systems used for RPO missions 
• Experience supporting the Space Force 
• Experience developing and deploying scalable software solutions in operational environments 
• Experience with any of the following additional languages: C++, Rust, Go, and/or C# 
• Agile project management practices

Pay Range: $200,000 - $250,000

Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

The application window will close in 40 days for this position.

Location: Colorado Springs, CO

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