Senior Optical Systems Engineer

Every image a satellite captures and every laser link it forms depends on someone who understands both the spacecraft and the optical payload riding on it, and that interface is where mission performance is won or lost.

Our client needs a senior optical systems engineer to sit at the heart of that interface, owning mission performance requirements for EO/IR and laser systems, building the models that predict how those systems will perform, and validating that performance on the ground and on orbit. If you have around 7 or more years in optical engineering and want a role where you are trusted to operate independently across the full lifecycle without yet needing to run an entire department, this is a strong fit.

The role

You will own mission performance requirements for remote sensing and/or space to space missions, modelling phenomenology and detection performance for EO/IR and active sensor systems. As the primary interface between the optical payload, the space vehicle team and the mission data processing team, you will manage requirements and interfaces across all three, design and implement modelling and simulation of optical systems, and develop and execute unit and system level test campaigns both on the ground and on orbit. You will also manage supplier and partner performance, coordinate project budgets and schedules, and contribute to large scale new business proposals. The team works across two main areas, EO/IR camera systems spanning visible through longwave infrared, and laser systems including laser rangefinders and optical communication terminals, so candidates with strength in either area, or both, are encouraged to apply.

What you’ll need

What sets candidates apart

Darwin Recruitment is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.

Adam Slade