Software Engineer - Embedded & Flight Systems

Key Responsibilities

• Implement and validate real-time embedded software for spacecraft payload and subsystem control under established architecture.
• Work closely with cross-functional members of the engineering organization to develop and evaluate interfaces between hardware and software, and operational performance requirements for the overall system.
• Develop device drivers, middleware, and board bring-up support alongside hardware teams, including APIs, board support packages (BSPs), and health and status reporting.
• Build automated unit, integration, and hardware-in-the-loop test suites, using test frameworks and software coverage tools (e.g., Python-based frameworks) as applicable.
• Support fault-injection testing and environmental test campaigns (TVAC, vibration, EMI/EMC).
• Implement communication interfaces using protocols such as SPI, I2C, UART, CAN, Ethernet, RS-422, and, where applicable, SpaceWire and CCSDS standards.
• Support hardware and software integration and test activities across mission computing and memory systems.
• Participate in design and architecture reviews across the software development lifecycle.

Basic Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Experience: 5+ years of professional experience developing embedded software for hardware-centric, real-time systems.
• Technical Expertise
• Strong proficiency in C and C++ for embedded systems, with working knowledge of memory management, concurrency, interrupt handling, and real-time scheduling, and an understanding of software/hardware co-design and software/computer architecture.
• Experience developing software on ARM Cortex-M, ARM Cortex-A, RISC-V, or similar embedded processor architectures using RTOS (e.g., RTEMS, FreeRTOS, VxWorks, LynxOS, INTEGRITY, Zephyr) or bare-metal environments.
• Comfortable with hardware-software integration, using tools such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and JTAG debuggers.
• Experience using Git and collaborative software development workflows.
• Working knowledge of Bash/Python for scripting, test automation, and tooling.
• Exposure to space flight software or radiation-mitigation strategies in software.
• Experience with Embedded Linux.
• Experience collaborating with FPGA engineers or developing software for FPGA/SoC architectures.
• Familiarity with safety-critical or mission-assurance coding standards (MISRA C/C++, NASA cFE/cFS).
• DevSecOps and test automation experience using Python or similar languages.
• Experience with embedded security and encryption.
• Familiarity with release engineering, configuration/change management, and debug/trace analysis.
• Familiarity with embedded communications interfaces and network debugging, including Ethernet where applicable.
• Exposure to embedded processor architectures, peripheral integration, resource constraints, and hardware/software debugging.
• Help us deploy and scale space infrastructure that will drive our utilization of space forward! We offer a highly competitive benefits package including access to comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, 401(k) retirement plan, life insurance, and paid parental leave, in addition to other benefits.
• Star Catcher is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Star Catcher 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.
• All offers of employment at Star Catcher are contingent upon results of a thorough background check and your ability to provide proof of eligibility to work in the US.
• To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
• 5+ years of professional experience developing embedded software for hardware-centric, real-time systems.

Technical Expertise

Desired Skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Desired Skills