Electrical Engineer - Spacecraft

Katalyst Description

At Katalyst, we see human expansion into space not as a distant future, but as a present reality. As this growth accelerates, the need for advanced, reliable spacecraft has never been more critical.  We are standing at this forefront specializing in rendezvous and proximity operations creating spacecraft that can reconfigure, refuel, inspect and protect satellites on orbit rapidly, routinely, and regularly. In order to accomplish our mission, we also process data from a network of space-based sensors, both existing and deployable upgrades, using state of the art machine learning and advanced orbital dynamic filtering algorithms to increase space domain awareness, becoming the eyes and ears on orbit.

You might be a great fit for our team if you want to:

• Accelerate your growth—skip the corporate ladder and forge your own path.
• Embrace challenges and ambiguity; both failure and success are steps to solutions.
• Tackle the toughest problems in the space industry and reshape its future, working side by side on a team that’s bought into the mission.

Role Description

As an Electrical Engineer at Katalyst, you will design the embedded systems that function as the high-reliability brains of our spacecraft. This includes designing microcontroller-based hardware and software to coordinate sensing, mechanism actuation, power distribution, and secure communications across the satellite. You'll design, build, and deploy embedded software to custom spaceflight avionics, working closely with other electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, flight software engineers, and system architects.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, prototype, and test spacecraft avionics systems, including single-board computers, data acquisition hardware, motor controllers, power systems, and various mixed-signal systems.
• Write low-level firmware for microcontroller systems across various hardware platforms.
• Lead board bring-up, including hardware interface configuration and peripheral testing.
• Develop fault-tolerant systems for autonomous operation in harsh space environments.
• Architect and implement of high-reliability firmware on FPGA-based systems.
• Contribute to hardware-in-the-loop testing and support system validation through flight assembly and integration.
• Employ industry standard development tools to draft circuit schematics and layout PCBs.
• Contribute to design reviews and root-cause analysis of board-level and spacecraft-level issues.
• Collaborate on embedded systems architecture spanning all spacecraft electronics and ground support systems.

Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• 5+ years of electronics design experience in commercial, military, or space applications .
• Hands-on experience designing embedded systems that implement microcontrollers or FPGAs.
• Strong embedded software design experience with an emphasis on microcontroller firmware.
• Understanding of circuit-level design for mixed-signal applications.
• Understanding of common digital interfaces and peripheral protocols (I2C, SPI, UART, GPIO).
• Experience developing RTL for FPGA systems (VHDL experience is preferred).
• Strong hardware debugging skills using standard lab tools (oscilloscope, logic analyzer, multimeter).
• Familiarity with typical spacecraft data handling architectures and bus standards.
• Operating knowledge of spacecraft system fundamentals and space mission design .
• Experience with ECAD tools for schematic and PCB layout design (Altium familiarity is a plus).
• Understanding of radiation effects on electronics and component selection for radiation reliability.

Additional Requirements

Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed.

Compensation and Benefits

The anticipated salary range for this role is $115,000 - $160,000 annually.

Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at Katalyst. You will also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of the Employee Stock Option and Equity Plan, as well as a relocation bonus and other discretionary bonuses. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, and unlimited Paid Time Off. 

At Katalyst our work on projects involving the U.S. Department of Defense requires adherence to International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), 22 C.F.R. Parts 120-130, which requires compliance with U.S. export laws before allowing employees to perform certain positions. Currently, our available roles necessitate access to ITAR-controlled information, and as a result, Katalyst would have to ensure any non-US person is authorized access to ITAR information before the commencement of employment. We are committed to equal employment opportunities and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin.