Experienced Software Engineer
Confirmed on the employer's own hiring board on Sep 28, 2026. First seen by Alion on Jun 11, 2026. Starfish Space scores B on the Alion truth index.
About Starfish Space
Starfish Space provides satellite servicing missions with its Otter servicing vehicle, including life extension missions for geostationary satellites and disposal missions for low Earth orbit satellites. Founded in 2019, Starfish has raised over $150M in venture capital funding and built a team of engineers with experience spanning satellite guidance, navigation, control, and autonomous robotics. Starfish has launched several missions to-date, and is focused on delivering Otter satellite servicing missions for SES, the U.S. Space Force, the Space Development Agency, NASA, and others.
Position Description
Satellite servicing missions require spacecraft capable of autonomous, robotic operations in orbit. To fulfill our mission, Starfish has developed the Otter satellite servicing vehicle, which relies on autonomous software technologies to conduct rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking in orbit. These software products are developed and tested in simulation environments, and we are looking to hire a software engineer to support this work. This position will build space environment simulation software and infrastructure to support the refinement of our autonomous software. This role will involve everything ranging from building cloud infrastructure, to automating simulation analysis, to supporting integrations with satellite compute hardware.
Qualifications
Must be a US person (citizen or permanent resident)
Willing to work from Tukwila, Washington
Software development education or experience
Capable of working in a dynamic, fast-paced startup environment
Desired Experience
5+ years of relevant experience
B.S. degree or equivalent in Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, or similar field
Working knowledge of Python and C++
Previous experience with numerical simulations
ITAR Requirements To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.