Software Engineer - MMS

Wanna join the adventure?

Loft Orbital is seeking a Software Engineer to join our Mission Management Services (MMS) team. This role is at the heart of developing and maintaining the software that enables spacecraft and constellation scheduling. You’ll help design, build, and operate core MMS services that create optimal timeframes for client payload access and manage the complexity of multi-satellite operations.

As part of the MMS team, every engineer takes ownership of their work, has the opportunity (and is empowered!) to participate in live satellite operations, and directly impacts real-world missions. The position offers cutting-edge technical challenges involving the full automation stack, from schedule optimization to software integration for live missions: a unique and exciting blend of software engineering and space system operations.

About this Role:

• Design, develop, and maintain backend services to support mission scheduling and constellation management.
• Implement and optimize algorithms for automated spacecraft tasking and scheduling.
• Simulate and test scenarios across the fleet to provide robust operational capabilities.
• Manage deconfliction to prevent resource or operational conflicts.
• Contribute to mission-critical open-source libraries and tooling.
• Support internal users of Cockpit (our satellite operation software).
• Participate directly in S/C Ops (Spacecraft Operations); all team members rotate through spacecraft operations tasks.
• Engage in SatDevOps training to gain hands-on experience with spacecraft operations and build operational expertise within the engineering team.

Must Haves:

• Strong proficiency in production-grade Python programming.
• Experience working with containers.
• Solid experience with prominent web development backend frameworks.
• Experience with Python numerical and data processing libraries.
• Demonstrated experience designing, documenting, and implementing APIs.
• Self-motivated, with the ability to work collaboratively as part of an international engineering team.
• Strong problem-solving skills and operational awareness.

Nice to Haves:

• Backend development with Django.
• Database experience, at scale, particularly with PostgreSQL.
• Space Flight Dynamics experience (orbit, access, passes, etc.).
• Knowledge of advanced scheduling and optimization concepts.
• Experience with GraphQL.
• Familiarity with Kubernetes in a production environment.
• Industry exposure to real-time, high-availability, high-scale or mission-critical distributed systems.

Some of Our Awesome Benefits:

• Equity, we want you to have an active role in our success
• Up to 35 days of Paid Time Off (vacations & RTT ) and flexible working hours, we want you to be at your best
• Health and life insurance, we care about your health
• Lunch Vouchers, because let’s be honest, we love food! (we even have a slack channel about it #loft-gourmand )
• Cross-office travel opportunities between San Francisco, Colorado, and Toulouse to learn from our differences
• Company and team off-sites and many other events to work & celebrate together
• Relocation assistance to Toulouse when applicable

$140,000 - $190,000 a year

State law requires us to tell you the base compensation range for this role, which is $140,000- $190,000 per year. This is determined by your education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities. The salary range for this role is intentionally wide as we evaluate individuals based on their unique experience and abilities to fit our needs. Most importantly, we are excited to meet you, and see if you are a great fit for our team. What we can’t quantify for you are the exciting challenges, supportive team, and amazing culture we enjoy.

* Research shows that while men apply to jobs where they meet an average of 60% of the criteria, women and other underrepresented people tend to only apply when they meet 100% of the qualifications. At Loft, we value respectful debate and people who aren’t afraid to challenge assumptions. We strongly encourage you to apply, even if you don’t check all the boxes.

Who We Are

Our standard interface enables us to fly multiple customer payloads on the same satellite, with capabilities such as earth imagery, weather & climate /science data collection, IoT connectivity, in-orbit demonstrations, and national security missions. Our customers trust us to manage their space infrastructure, so they can focus on what matters most to them: operating their mission and collecting their data.

At Loft, you’ll be given the autonomy and ownership to solve significant challenges, but with a close-knit and supportive team at your back. We believe that diversity and community are the foundation of an open culture. We are committed to hiring the best people regardless of background and make their time at Loft the most fulfilling period of their career.

We value kind, supportive and team-oriented collaborators. It is also crucial for us that you are a problem solver and a great communicator. As our team is international, you will need strong English skills to better collaborate, easily communicate complex ideas and convey important messages.

With 6 satellites on-orbit and a wave of exciting missions launching soon, we are scaling up quickly across our offices in San Francisco, CA | Golden, CO | and Toulouse, France.

As an international company your resume will be reviewed by people across our offices so please attach a copy in English.