Staff Electrical Hardware Engineer
Lunar Outpost is seeking a Staff Electrical Hardware Engineer to lead the design, development, and maturation of complex electrical hardware for spaceflight and lunar surface systems. This role focuses on end-to-end ownership of electrical hardware-from architecture and schematic design through layout, test, and integration-with a balanced emphasis across power, digital, analog, and high-speed interfaces. Your work will not only contribute to pioneering lunar missions, but also to technologies with the potential to benefit humanity on Earth. Collaborating with cross-disciplinary engineering teams, you'll bring deep technical expertise and leadership to solve challenging hardware problems in a fast-paced startup environment.
Take the #NextLeap with Lunar Outpost and work on the Pegasus LTV, which will carry NASA astronauts farther than they've ever been before on the lunar surface!
Key Responsibilities:
- Lead the design and development of electrical hardware for spaceflight systems, prototypes, and ground support equipment
- Own electrical hardware from concept through flight, including requirements, schematics, PCB layout oversight, bring-up, and verification
- Design and review mixed-signal circuits incorporating digital logic, analog interfaces, sensing, control, and on-board power conversion
- Design board-level power architectures, including DC/DC converters, point-of-load regulation, power distribution, sequencing, and protection
- Develop and support high-speed electrical designs (e.g., LVDS, Ethernet, SpaceWire, PCIe, or equivalent interfaces) with attention to signal integrity
- Collaborate closely with mechanical, thermal, software, harnessing, and systems engineering to ensure robust hardware integration
- Support component selection (processors, FPGAs, memories, connectors, converters) with consideration for spaceflight environments
- Guide hardware trade studies and architecture decisions based on performance, reliability, risk, cost, and schedule
- Participate in prototype builds, board bring-up, debugging, and root-cause analysis using lab equipment (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, spectrum analyzers, etc.)
- Plan and support verification and test campaigns including functional, environmental, EMI/EMC, and system-level testing
- Prepare and review technical documentation supporting design reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR), qualification, and flight readiness
- Serve as a technical mentor to junior engineers, establishing best practices for electrical design and documentation
- Interface with NASA customers, partners, and vendors as a technical authority for electrical hardware
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Electrical Engineering or a closely related field
- Minimum of 8 years of professional experience developing electrical hardware for aerospace, spaceflight, or other safety-critical systems
- Demonstrated experience with spaceflight hardware design, qualification, or flight support
- Hands-on experience designing high-speed electrical systems, including schematic design and layout-aware signal integrity considerations
- Experience designing radiation-tolerant or space-rated electronics
- Strong foundation in analog and digital circuit design, including power regulation, data interfaces, sensing, and control
- Demonstrated experience with board-level power design, including DC/DC conversion, point-of-load regulation, power sequencing, and protection circuits
- Experience supporting board bring-up, integration, and troubleshooting in laboratory and vehicle environments
- Proficiency with Altium Designer for schematic capture, PCB layout coordination, and design release
- Familiarity with aerospace or NASA standards, review processes, and documentation expectations
- Ability to independently own complex hardware designs and make sound engineering tradeoffs
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Self-motivated, organized, and comfortable operating in a fast-paced hardware development environment
- U.S. Person *
Preferred Qualifications:
- Master of Science (MS) in Electrical Engineering
- Experience supporting NASA programs such as Artemis, ISS, Commercial Crew, or comparable missions
- Experience designing to SpaceVPX or related modular space avionics architectures
- Experience with designing high voltage, high power electronics up to 120V
- Familiarity with high-reliability PCB design practices for harsh environments (thermal cycling, vibration, vacuum)
- Experience with FPGA- or processor-based systems and embedded interfaces
- Experience with EMI/EMC design and mitigation for spaceflight hardware
- Prior experience in an aerospace startup or agile commercial space organization
Compensation & Benefits: Compensation level and base salary are competitively structured and thoughtfully determined based on factors such as relevant skills, experience, education, and the scope of the role.
- Comprehensive health coverage: Medical, dental, and vision benefits, with 70% of premiums covered by the employer
- Paid time off: Three (3) weeks per year of vacation
- Retirement plan: Up to 4% employer match on 401(k) contributions
- Paid holidays: 11 company-recognized holidays
- Parental leave
- Educational reimbursement opportunities to support company objectives, continued learning, and career development
