Senior Principal Architect, Space Safety and Sustainability

Role Overview

• Own the TeraWave Space Sustainability Strategy, ODAR, and ODM — stewarding and evolving these documents to remain accurate, credible, and aligned with the design reference mission as the program matures, in compliance with NASA-STD-8719.14C and the ODMSP.
• Lead TeraWave's technical engagement with the FCC and other regulatory bodies on matters of orbital debris and space traffic coordination, providing compliance assessments and shaping TeraWave's technical positions as regulations evolve.
• Lead technical interchanges with other satellite operators and advocacy organizations, establishing cooperative frameworks for space traffic coordination and representing TeraWave's positions in industry and regulatory forums.
• Architect TeraWave's space traffic coordination strategy and systems — including orbit selection philosophy, inter-operator coordination methodology, and the systems for acquiring, distributing, and processing ephemeris data — ensuring a reliable conjunction assessment capability across all operational phases and at full fleet scale.
• Define the end-to-end collision risk mitigation architecture, from automated conjunction data ingestion through novel spacecraft hardware and operational designs, always maintaining stringent minimum collision probability thresholds.
• Establish engineering standards, analysis methods, and tools for debris minimization across the satellite lifecycle, including demisability compliance, mitigation of MMOD-driven energetic failures in critical systems, and passivization strategies at end of life.
• Collaborate with spacecraft, GNC, propulsion, power, and operations teams to embed space safety and sustainability requirements early in system design, with the architecture defined by this role serving as the governing framework against which those teams design and build.

Requirements

• Master's degree in aerospace engineering, astrodynamics, systems engineering, or equivalent technical field.
• 12+ years of experience in spacecraft systems, orbital mechanics, or space operations, with significant direct experience across at least two of the following: space traffic management and coordination, collision avoidance system design, orbital debris analysis, or satellite regulatory compliance.
• Deep working knowledge of orbital mechanics including orbit propagation, conjunction assessment, maneuver planning, and debris environment modeling, with proficiency in relevant tools such as STK, Python, or MATLAB.
• Working familiarity with NASA-STD-8719.14C and the ODMSP, with direct experience engaging with regulatory processes and making substantive technical contributions to ODARs or equivalent compliance documentation.
• Demonstrated ability to translate space safety and sustainability requirements into engineering design standards and system architecture specifications across multidisciplinary teams.
• Excellent verbal, written, and graphical communication skills, including demonstrated experience representing technical positions to external stakeholders or regulatory bodies, and the ability to communicate clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a fast-paced, dynamic work environment.

Tech Stack

• Python

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance
• Paid parental leave
• Short and long-term disability
• 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%
• Education Support Program
• Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
• Paid Time Off: Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.
• Dependent on role type and job level, employees may be eligible for benefits and bonuses