Backend Engineer Mission Operations Services

San Francisco, CA - USA

Monthly Salary: Not Disclosed

Posted on: Yesterday

Vacancies: 1 Vacancy

Job Summary

Loft Orbital is looking for a Backend Engineer to join our Mission Operations Services (MOS) team. MOS owns the backend services that let Loft operators and customers command monitor and automate our satellite fleet through Cockpit our mission control system. Youll help build and scale the microservices that sit between ground and flight software turning high-level intent into safe reliable on-orbit operations.

Youll work across multiple satellite platforms and collaborate closely with backend flight software embedded systems test and satellite operations teams. This is a hands-on engineering role where youll both build new systems and help debug live missions. We also offer SatDevOps training so you dont just write the tools - you actually use them to operate spacecraft.

If youre excited about building backend systems that directly control satellites - and you like the idea of both shipping code and helping fly missions - wed love to hear from you.

About this Role

Design and build backend tools for operations: services that power passes autopilots activities and daytoday satellite operations.
Handle commands and telemetry across multiple satellite buses and ground segment providers with a strong focus on safety robustness and observability.
Write production backend code in Python owning services endtoend from design and implementation through deployment and maintenance.
Collaborate with flight software embedded software integration and test and space infrastructure teams to integrate new satellite buses and capabilities into Cockpit.
Support internal users of Cockpit (operators test engineers solutions engineers) by improving APIs workflows and debugging tools.
Have the opportunity to take part in spacecraft operations through SatDevOps rotations occasionally helping investigate anomalies and supporting realtime incident response when needed.

Must Haves:

Solid Python development experience in a production environment.
Experience with Docker and containerbased development.
Handson experience with backend web development frameworks (e.g. Django Flask FastAPI etc.).
Proven API design skills (designing documenting and maintaining HTTP/GraphQL/RESTstyle APIs).

Nice to Haves:

Experience with Django and/or GraphQL.
Strong database fundamentals and practical experience (e.g. Postgres timeseries DBs).
Exposure to Kubernetes in production.
Familiarity with InfluxDB / TimescaleDB or other timeseries systems.
Background in missioncritical distributed or realtime systems (space or otherwise).

$140000 - $190000 a year

State law requires us to share the posted base compensation range for this role. Final compensation will be determined based on your education experience knowledge skills and abilities. The salary range is intentionally broad to account for differences in experience and scope as well as geographic market variations in pay. We evaluate each candidate individually to ensure alignment between their background the roles responsibilities and local market importantly we are excited to meet you and see if you are a great fit for our team. What wecantquantify for you are the exciting challenges supportive team and amazing culture we enjoy.

Who We Are: Founded in 2017 Loft provides governments companies and research institutions with a fast reliable and simple way to deploy missions in orbit.

We integrate launch and operate spacecraft offering end-to-end missions as a service across Earth observation IoT connectivity on-orbit AI national security missions and more. Leveraging our existing space infrastructure and an extensive inventory of satellite buses Loft is reducing years-long integration and launch timelines to months. With more than 30 missions flown Lofts flight heritage and proven technologies enable customers to focus on their mission objectives.

With a growing fleet on track to reach 30 satellites by 2027 we are scaling up quickly across our offices in San Francisco CA Golden CO and Toulouse France to meet accelerating demand for space infrastructure.

Required Experience: