Backend / Data Platform Engineer
Confirmed on the employer's own hiring board on Oct 1, 2026. First seen by Alion on Sep 30, 2026.
Backend / Data Platform Engineer
This is a future role. We're building a shortlist now and will contact you when it opens.
About us
Foundational is building the most precise picture of Earth and orbit, using lasers fired from the ground. We call it ground truth for orbit.
We design and run low-cost, autonomous satellite laser ranging stations. They measure the distance to satellites with extreme precision, day and night. Our data platform turns those measurements into tracking data and orbit products for satellite operators, space agencies and governments. We also build our own flight-proven laser retroreflector arrays, so any satellite can be tracked.
Our station network is expanding across Europe, South America, Africa and Australia. The data supports resilient navigation, Earth observation and the safe, sustainable use of space.
We're a small, fast-moving team of engineers, scientists and operators in London. We're backed by venture investors and supported by ESA, the UK Space Agency, Innovate UK and the European Innovation Council.
Position Overview
London · Full time · On-site
You'll build the platform that ingests, processes and serves our tracking data, all the way from station to customer API.
What you'll do
Build ingest pipelines from our stations and from third-party data sources
Design data models and storage for high-volume, time-series scientific data
Build and maintain customer APIs and data delivery in standard formats
Make pipelines reliable, observable and secure, including for customers with strict data-handling requirements
Work closely with front-end, geodesy and orbit determination engineers
What you'll bring
Extensive experience building backend systems in production
Strong Python (or Go or Rust) and SQL
Experience with data pipelines, message queues and time-series storage
Cloud infrastructure and containers (Docker, Kubernetes)
Care for testing, security and documentation
Nice to have
Scientific or geospatial data
Space data standards (CCSDS, CRD)
Streaming platforms such as Kafka
A background in space situational awareness
What We Offer
A high-impact role with real ownership at an early-stage, venture-backed spacetech company
EMI share options (UK employees)
25 Days Annual Leave + Bank Holidays
Enhanced Parental Leave
Cycle to work schemes
Work alongside engineers and scientists across optics, lasers, software and astrodynamics
Offices in central London, with snacks, tea, coffee and regular social
We actively champion underrepresented groups and seek to bridge gaps in our workforce. If you're excited by the role but don't match every point, or you’re seeking a part time role, please apply anyway and add a note into your application. Building the best team is our priority.