{"id":4058812,"url":"https://alion.io/job/anduril-industries-2027-optical-payload-engineer-intern","title":"2027 Optical Payload Engineer Intern","company":{"id":14,"name":"Anduril Industries","domain":"anduril.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/anduril","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":79,"open_postings":636,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.849,"repost_share":0.006,"time_to_fill_p50_days":50,"computed_at":"2026-11-12T10:38:37Z"}},"role":"Aerospace","role_family":"Aerospace","seniority":"intern","employment_type":"internship","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Costa Mesa, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":40,"max":55,"currency":"USD","period":"hour","gross":null,"usd_annual":110000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":null,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":true,"technologies":[{"name":"Computer Vision","optional":false},{"name":"Sensor Fusion","optional":false},{"name":"Verification & Validation","optional":false},{"name":"MATLAB","optional":true},{"name":"Python","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-10T21:46:19Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-10","last_verified_at":"2026-11-12T15:18:03Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":1,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":1},"description":"Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.\nABOUT THE JOB\nAs an Optical Payload Engineer intern for our Space team, you will facilitate the integration of EO Payloads on our spacecraft platforms from initial concept development through on-orbit execution. A successful candidate will have exposure to all phases of payload system engineering including architecture and requirement derivation, performance modeling, design reviews, laboratory testing, spacecraft assembly integration and test, on-orbit initialization, and mission operations. Exposure to interfacing with all disciplines of engineering, specialty, and program management teams to shepherd a payload design to maturity is required.\nYou’ll be expected to clearly communicate risk, issues, and progress with customer representatives and external vendors in a collaborative environment. You will be expected to know how to configure and operate test equipment such as collimators, integrating spheres, interferometers, and other tools. Payloads you will be interacting with include photon detecting imagers from visible through long wave infrared wavebands including CMOS and CCD focal planes, thermal sensors including microbolometers, as well as LiDAR and laser range finders. Exposure to state-of-the-art sensing technology such as event-based cameras, quantum detectors, and metamaterials is also highly desired.\nWHAT YOU’LL DO\nPerform concept designs of active and passive EO payloads\nDerive system and unit level requirements\nAnalyze performance with an understanding of payload technology and related physics\nIdentify payload key performance parameters and create test plans and procedures to measure these parameters in a laboratory environment\nPerform hands-on characterization and calibration of the radiometric and geometric performance of flight hardware using collimators, integrating spheres, theodolites, laser trackers, interferometers, and other optical test equipment\nWork with the external and internal engineering team to author Interface Control Documents (ICD) covering all aspects of payload integration including electrical, data, algorithmic, mechanical, thermal, and optical interfaces\nFacilitate communication between mechanical, thermal, electrical, and software teams to resolve complex integration trades and manage technical risk\nDefine and develop payload data calibration algorithms and data products and work with computer vision and flight software engineers to integrate these algorithms into the processing pipeline\nDefine on-orbit calibration sequences, initialization procedures, and provide real-time engineering support during nominal operations\nClearly communicate with customers at design reviews and during the entire payload development lifecycle\nAssist assembly and integration campaigns for space systems flight hardware\nIntegrate across numerous teams to collaboratively identify testing requirements to include verification and validation plans\nDevelop test plans and procedures for prototype, qualification, and acceptance of space systems flight hardware\nREQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS \nMust be pursuing a bachelor’s or master’s degree in Systems Engineering, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field. \nMust be returning to school at the end of the internship to continue academic studies for at least one quarter or semester.\nMust be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities; U.S. clearance eligibility may be required depending on program.\nAbility to complete an in-person 12-week internship in one of our offices in summer 2027.\nPREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS \nExperience conducting assembly, integration and test of space payload flight hardware with a focus on performance characterization and requirement verification\nUnderstanding of professional optical test equipment, tools and methodologies with a tie back to the underlying physics\nExperience with advanced payload analyses and laboratory measurements including photon transfer, dark current, radiometry, responsivity, distortion mapping, boresight alignments, non-uniformity corrections, point spread function, modulation transfer function, and more\nAbility to quickly understand and navigate complex systems and detailed requirements\nCapable of solving complex technical problems with little oversight\nClear communication and organizational skills including documentation and training material\nExposure to writing technical documentation, procedures, and reports\nExperience with ImageJ, Python, MATLAB\nExperience with optical test equipment from Labsphere, 4D Technologies, Leica, SORL, and other industry leaders\nExperience with stray light, depth of focus, and supplementary payload analyses\nExperience with optical modeling in tools such as Zemax or Code V\nExperience with RF payload design and testing\nUS Hourly Range\n$40—$55 USD\nThe salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including: \nBenefits\nAt Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.\nProtecting Yourself from Recruitment Scams\nAnduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information.\nTo ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind:\nNo Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.\n\nPlease always verify communications:Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address.\nVia Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to . \n\nExercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.\n\nWhat to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to . Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.\n\nData Privacy\nTo view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit https://anduril.com/applicant-privacy-notice/. \nBy submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. 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