{"id":3932760,"url":"https://alion.io/job/impulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar","title":"Senior Optical Navigation Engineer (Lunar)","company":{"id":58617,"name":"Impulse Space","domain":"impulsespace.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/impulse-space","size_band":"201-500","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Pinpoint","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":100,"open_postings":6,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":27,"computed_at":"2026-11-08T05:47:12Z"}},"role":"Industrial Engineering","role_family":"Industrial Engineering","seniority":"senior","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Redondo Beach, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":210000,"max":300000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":300000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":10,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":true,"technologies":[{"name":"C++","optional":false},{"name":"MATLAB","optional":false},{"name":"SLI/SLO/SLA","optional":false},{"name":"GMAT","optional":true},{"name":"STK","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-07T03:16:53Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-07","last_verified_at":"2026-11-09T03:58:56Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":2,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":2},"description":"As a Senior Optical Navigation Engineer at Impulse Space, you will own the onboard optical navigation algorithms and software for our lunar lander across all phases of development and operation, while working in a fast-paced, agile team. You will design, implement, and validate the navigation filters and sensor-fusion techniques that land our spacecraft on the moon, as well as provide inputs on the hardware and embedded-system design.\nResponsibilities\nDesign, develop, and tune navigation algorithms for low-lunar-orbit (LLO) navigation, descent, and landing\nProvide inputs for the camera system that provides imagery to the terrain-relative navigation system\nImplement the terrain-relative navigation algorithms and software, performing crater detection/matching and image comparison for odometry\nPerform spacecraft navigation analyses: orbit determination, attitude determination, covariance analysis, and navigation error budgets\nDevelop and validate simulated sensor and measurement models in Impulse’s 6DOF simulation environment\nImplement navigation algorithms in flight code (C++) and support SIL/HIL integration and test\nPerform Monte Carlo analysis to characterize navigation performance under dispersed and off-nominal conditions\nGenerate navigation verification data for Impulse's lunar missions\nSupport navigation operations: real-time orbit determination, console support, and anomaly response during critical mission phases\nCommunicate navigation design needs, intent, performance, trades, and risk to the broader engineering team\n\nMinimum Qualifications\nBachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, Physics, or a related discipline \n8+ years of experience in spacecraft navigation, orbit determination, or estimation \nExperience in vision-based navigation design and implementation \nDemonstrated experience in verification, simulation, or test of navigation or perception systems \nProficiency in Matlab and C++ \nDemonstrated experience designing and implementing spacecraft navigation \nExcellent technical communication skills \n\nPreferred Skills and Experience\n10+ years of experience in spacecraft navigation, orbit determination, or estimation \nDemonstrated experience with terrain-relative navigation, precision landing, or hazard detection \nExperience with landmark, crater, or map-relative localization and feature-tracking algorithms \nExperience with lunar or planetary map products and tools (e.g., Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter imagery and digital elevation models) \nExperience with camera models, calibration, radiometry, and synthetic scene or image generation for testing \nExperience with OpNav HITLs \nExperience with navigation/astrodynamics tools (FreeFlyer, GMAT, STK, etc.) \nExperience with powered descent, entry-descent-landing, rendezvous and proximity operations, or other deep-space missions \nExperience in a startup or fast-paced, iterative hardware development environment \nAdditional Information:\nCompensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options, and access to medical, vision & dental coverage as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan.\nImpulse Space’s spacecraft manufacturing business is subject to U.S. export regulations including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and Export Administration Regulations (EAR). This position requires applicants to be either U.S. Persons (i.e., U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent U.S. resident (green card holder), an individual granted asylum in the U.S., or an individual admitted in U.S. refugee status) or persons eligible to obtain an export license from the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, or other applicable U.S. government agencies. Learn more about the ITAR here.\nImpulse Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Impulse Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.","description_format":"text","description_chars":4497,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":10,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":true,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity","Retirement plans","Stock options"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Space Services"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-11-08T03:16:53Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":90,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.903,"p_room":1,"age_days":1,"expected_fill_days":27,"reasons":["conf:2","velocity","win:early","comp:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-11-08T05:47:12Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":300000,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/impulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/impulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-09T05:58:26Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":1639,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-10T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":58617},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=58617"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fimpulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":2,"usd":0.2},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fimpulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fimpulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/impulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fimpulse-space-senior-optical-navigation-engineer-lunar"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":3932760}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"impulsespace.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":3932760},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); https://alion.io/mcp with an Alion account has everything. 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