{"id":3035707,"url":"https://alion.io/job/vast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist","title":"Electric Propulsion Specialist","company":{"id":185145,"name":"Vast Space","domain":"vastspace.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/vastspace","size_band":"501-1000","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":84,"open_postings":61,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.623,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":52,"computed_at":"2026-10-27T05:46:45Z"}},"role":"Aerospace","role_family":"Aerospace","seniority":"senior","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Long Beach, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":138000,"max_usd":250000,"period":"year","method":"role_seniority_country_remote_cell","sample_n":265},"experience_years_min":5,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-12T18:33:31Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-20","last_verified_at":"2026-10-27T21:35:15Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":15,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":15},"description":"Vast is developing next-generation space stations and space infrastructure using an incremental, hardware-rich, and low-cost approach. Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches in 2027, followed by additional Haven modules. Additionally, the company recently announced Vast Satellite, a high-power satellite product line leveraging its space station components and the heritage of Haven Demo.\nHeadquartered in Long Beach, California, and with more than 1,000 employees and over a billion dollars in private capital, Vast has built the facilities required to manufacture and operate America’s next space station. The company plans to develop future habitats and systems for the Moon and Mars, dedicated space stations for government partners, and other crewed systems that will unlock the expanding long-term space economy.\nVast is looking for a(n) Electric Propulsion Specialist, reporting to theDirector of Production, to support the development of the systems that will be required for the design and build of human-rated space stations. This will be a full-time, non-exempt position located in ourLong Beach location. \nAs an Electric Propulsion Specialist, you'll work hands-on in the lab where our propulsion hardware gets built and tested. You'll work side by side with propulsion engineers to assemble, wire, and test electric propulsion hardware, from thrusters to the high-voltage power and harnessing that drives them. \nResponsibilities: \nFabricate, assemble, integrate, and test electric propulsion hardware, including thrusters, propellant feed components, power electronics, and test support equipment\nBuild, inspect, and repair electrical harnesses and cable assemblies, including soldering, crimping, potting, splicing, lacing, and connector termination\nSafely work on high-voltage systems and equipment, following lockout/tagout, grounding, and other electrical safety practices\nRun, maintain, and troubleshoot vacuum chambers and pumping systems\nSet up and run thruster and component tests, including mounting hardware, routing instrumentation, checking out data acquisition systems, and monitoring tests\nMachine fixtures, brackets, adapters, and test hardware on manual and/or CNC mills and lathes from drawings or engineering sketches\nDiagnose electrical and mechanical problems using multimeters, hipot and insulation-resistance testers, oscilloscopes, and leak detectors\nFollow and help write work instructions, test procedures, and build travelers, and record as-built configurations and any non-conformances accurately\nKeep the lab, tooling, and test areas clean, organized, and safe, including inventory of consumables and spares\nWork with engineering, quality, and other technicians to feed manufacturing and test lessons back into design\nMinimum Qualifications:\n5+ years of hands-on experience as an electrical, electromechanical, or test technician in aerospace, defense, research, or a similar high-reliability industry (or equivalent military experience)\nDemonstrated experience building wire harnesses and cable assemblies, including soldering, crimping, and connector termination\nExperience working safely on high-voltage systems or equipment\nMachining experience on manual and/or CNC mills and lathes\nPreferred Skills & Experience:\nExperience operating and maintaining high-vacuum systems, including roughing pumps, turbomolecular pumps, diffusion pumps, and/or cryopumps\nExperience with helium leak detection, vacuum gauges, and vacuum fittings (KF, CF, ISO)\nExperience with electric propulsion systems (Hall-effect, gridded ion, or similar) or plasma/high-voltage lab equipment\nWelding experience (TIG preferred), especially on stainless steel or thin-walled tubing\nCurrent IPC/WHMA-A-620, J-STD-001 (including Space Addendum), and/or NASA-STD-8739 certification\nExperience with precision cleaning, cleanroom work, or contamination control for flight hardware\nExperience with propellant feed systems, including tube bending, fittings, and pressure/leak testing\nAbility to read and interpret electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, and mechanical drawings, including GD&T\nExperience with data acquisition systems and test instrumentation\nFamiliarity with documenting work in an MES or similar system for manufacturing and quality records\nStrong attention to detail and a commitment to quality and safety\nAbility to work effectively in a team and to make sound independent judgments with limited information\nComfortable in a fast-paced environment, balancing several tasks at once and adapting to changing priorities\nAdditional Requirements:\nWillingness to work overtime, extended shifts, or weekends to support critical test campaigns and mission milestones\nAbility to lift up to [50] lbs unassisted\nAbility to wear PPE as required, and to work in cleanrooms and confined spaces around test chambers\nAbility to travel up to [10]% of the time to support testing at vendor or external facilities\nPay Range: California\n$42.97—$61 USD\nWe calibrate level and compensation to the selected candidate's experience and demonstrated capability. We welcome applicants across a range of experience levels to apply.\nCOMPENSATION AND BENEFITS\n\nBase salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, generous paid time off; up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days of vacation for non-exempt staff with the ability to cash-out unused vacation annually, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks. We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality meals for employees.\n\nU.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS\n The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.\nEQUAL OPPORTUNITY\nVast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast 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":7498,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":5,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity","Life insurance","Parental leave","Retirement plans"],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Manufacturing","Space & Aerospace","Aerospace Manufacturing","Satellite Manufacturing"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-21T21:19:24Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":63,"band":"ok","label":"Likely open","p_open":1,"p_active":0.632,"p_room":1,"age_days":14,"expected_fill_days":52,"reasons":["conf:2","stale_co","velocity","win:early","comp:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-10-27T05:46:45Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/vast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/vast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-28T01:42:56Z","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":2252,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-29T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"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":185145},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=185145"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fvast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"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%2Fvast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"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%2Fvast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist"},{"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/vast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fvast-space-electric-propulsion-specialist"}]}