Orbit Determination Engineer II

BLUE ORIGIN

Orbit Determination Engineer II developing navigation systems for space vehicles at Blue Origin. Focused on orbit determination, software development, and mission operations across multiple mission portfolios.

Posted 6/27/2026full-timeReston • Colorado, Virginia • 🇺🇸 United StatesJuniorMid-Level💰 $98,208 - $137,491 per yearWebsite

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

DockerJenkinsPythonTypeScript

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Perform Orbit Determination: Process radiometric, Doppler and GPS to generate orbit solutions for GEO, cislunar, and interplanetary spacecraft; learn to interpret and communicate results in an operational context.
Develop Navigation Software: Write, test, and maintain navigation algorithms and data processing tools in Python, Julia, or C++; contribute to a shared codebase following software development best practices.
Support Mission Operations: Provide operations support during mission-critical phases, learning to execute orbit determination products under real-time constraints alongside experienced navigators.
Contribute to Mission Design: Support trajectory and mission design tasks for GEO, cislunar, and interplanetary concepts.
Build and Validate Models: Develop and validate force models, measurement models, and simulation tools that underpin high-fidelity navigation analysis.
Collaborate and Communicate: Work closely with ATX team members, flight operations teams, and systems engineers; clearly document and present your results in technical memos and design reviews.
Deliver with Agile Discipline: Contribute to sprint planning and delivery in an Agile development environment; use tools such as Jira and git to manage and track your work.

Requirements

What you’ll need

M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related fields with 2+ years of relevant experience; OR Ph.D. with no additional experience required
Foundational knowledge of astrodynamics and orbital mechanics
Experience or coursework in orbit determination, estimation theory, or navigation
Experience in at least one of the following: Python, Julia, or C++
Familiarity with numerical simulation tools or scripted analysis environments
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Ability to earn trust, maintain positive and professional relationships, and contribute to a culture of inclusion.
Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.
Preferred Qualifications: Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related fields.
Applied experience with orbit determination tools such as Monte, STK/ODTK, FreeFlyer, or GMAT.
Familiarity with GEO, cislunar, or interplanetary mission environments and their associated navigation challenges.
Experience with radiometric orbit determination (Doppler, ranging) or optical navigation techniques.
Experience with mission design analysis including trajectory trade studies, delta-v budgeting, or ConOps development.
Exposure to spacecraft operations or mission operations environments.
Experience with DevOps processes including configuration control, continuous integration/deployment, Agile methodologies, and code review.
Previous experience with software development tooling such as Jira, git, Jenkins, Docker, and at least one IDE.
Experience using generative AI tools to expedite and automate your workflow.
Willingness or ability to acquire Active Top Secret (TS) / Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) security clearance with Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) with polygraph preferred.

Benefits

Comp & perks

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.
Eligibility for benefits and bonuses based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results.

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

Orbit DeterminationNavigation AlgorithmsPythonJuliaC++Numerical SimulationRadiometric Orbit DeterminationMission Design AnalysisForce ModelsEstimation Theory

Soft Skills

Verbal CommunicationWritten CommunicationTrust BuildingProfessional RelationshipsCollaborationCultural InclusionProblem SolvingAdaptabilityTeamworkCritical Thinking

Certifications

Ph.D. in Aerospace EngineeringM.S. in Aerospace EngineeringActive Top Secret (TS) ClearanceSensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) Clearance