Senior Embedded Control Systems Engineer – Lunar Permanence

Application close date:

Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!  

This role is part of the Lunar Permanence business unit, which develops Blue Origin’s Blue Moon landers and related products. To further Blue Origin's mission of millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth, we are building sustainable infrastructure for our transport of crew and cargo from Earth to the lunar surface.

As a Senior Motor Control Engineer on Core Avionics, you will serve as the Responsible Engineer (RE) for a family of embedded motor controllers reused across multiple vehicles and mechanisms (e.g., gimbals, valves, pumps, deployables). You will own the technical baseline—requirements, architecture, interfaces, design margins, verification evidence, and qualification approach—and guide a multi-disciplinary team to deliver safe, repeatable, high-reliability motor control products supporting human lunar missions. You will interface directly with internal vehicle “customers,” NASA, and National Team Partners to define product needs and ensure the controllers meet performance, fault tolerance, and safety objectives.

Responsibilities:

• Own the motor controller family technical baseline as the Responsible Engineer: requirements, architecture, design decisions, interfaces (ICDs), configuration control, and lifecycle documentation to enable reuse across vehicles.
• Partner with vehicle and subsystem teams (“customers”) to define product needs: performance, environments, fault tolerance, safety/hazard controls, operability, integration constraints, and reuse strategy.
• Develop controller architectures spanning power electronics, sensing, embedded processing, and firmware to support motor technologies including BLDC and stepper.
• Guide a multi-disciplinary team (EE power, EE digital, firmware, mechanical, analysis, test, systems, safety/reliability, manufacturing) through concept → design → build → integration → test → qualification.
• Define and manage controller interfaces to motors, resolvers/encoders/sensors, vehicle power, and avionics networks; ensure robust EMI/EMC and grounding/bonding strategies as applicable.
• Drive fault-tolerant motor control design: redundancy strategies, safe-state behavior, fault detection/isolation/recovery, built-in test, degraded modes, and telemetry for health management.
• Plan and execute verification: define test strategy and procedures; support bench bring-up, HIL where appropriate, environmental testing, and qualification/acceptance evidence closure.
• Coordinate parts selection and design practices considering space radiation effects (TID/SEE), derating, and mitigation approaches appropriate to mission.
• Communicate progress, risks, and trade decisions clearly; lead technical reviews and ensure issues are tracked to closure.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Demonstrated experience developing and delivering motor drive/control systems for stepper and/or BLDC motor applications (architecture through test).
• Experience with high-precision and/or high-speed motor control in safety-critical or high-reliability systems.
• Experience designing fault-tolerant control electronics and embedded control behavior (FDIR, safe state, redundancy management).
• Experience owning a technical baseline for a product line (requirements, ICDs, design trades, verification/validation, configuration control), including reuse across multiple platforms.
• Demonstrated technical leadership guiding multi-disciplinary teams to successful product delivery.
• Familiarity with space radiation effects and mitigation strategies relevant to electronics.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including leading technical reviews.
• B.S./B.A. in engineering or a relevant technical field.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience developing spacecraft mechanism controllers (e.g., solar array drive assemblies, antenna gimbals, valve controllers, pump drives).
• Experience with Altium (or equivalent) for PCB design collaboration/review.
• Experience performing FMEA/FTA (including network/system-level fault tree contributions) or other reliability/fault tolerance analyses.
• Experience with systems engineering tools such as Jama (or similar).
• Experience working in a safety-critical development environment and supporting qualification testing campaigns.
• Basic project management skills (planning, milestones, risk management, cross-team coordination).

 

Compensation Range for:

CA applicants is $183,193.00 - $256,469.85 CO applicants is $173,466.00 - $242,851.35 WA applicants is $183,193.00 - $256,469.85

Other site ranges may differ

Culture Statement

Don’t meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Export Control Regulations

Applicants for employment at Blue Origin must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e. current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Background Check

• Required for all positions: Blue’s Standard Background Check

• Required for Certain Job Profiles:  Defense Biometric Identification System (DBIDS) background check if at any time the role requires one to be on a military installation

• Required for Certain Job Profiles: Drivers who operate Commercial Motor Vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) or combination of power unit and trailer that meets or exceeds 10,001 lbs. and/or transports placardable amounts of hazardous materials by ground in any vehicle on a public road while in commerce, may be subject to additional Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations including: Driver Qualification Files, Medical Certification (obtained before onboarding), Road Test, Hours of Service, Drug and Alcohol Testing (CDL drivers only), vehicle inspection requirements, CDL requirements (if applicable) and hazardous materials transportation/shipping training.

• Required for certain Job Profiles: Ability to obtain and maintain Merchant Mariner Credential, which includes pre-employment and random drug testing as well as DOT physical

Benefits

• Benefits include:  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%, and an Education Support Program.

• 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 based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results, or other factors at the company's sole discretion. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and subject to change and cancellation. Please check with your recruiter for more details.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Blue Origin is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and is committed to attracting, retaining, and developing a highly qualified and dedicated work force. Blue Origin hires and promotes people on the basis of their qualifications, performance, and abilities. We support the establishment and maintenance of a workplace that fosters trust, equality, and teamwork. We provide all qualified applicants for employment and employees with equal opportunities for hire, promotion, and other terms and conditions of employment, regardless of their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin/ethnicity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic factors, military/veteran status, or any other status or characteristic protected by federal, state, and/or local law. Blue Origin will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state, and local laws, including the Washington Fair Chance Act, the California Fair Chance Act, the Los Angeles Fair Chance in Hiring Ordinance, and other applicable laws. For more information on “Know Your Rights,” please see here.

Affirmative Action and Disability Accommodation

Applicants wishing to receive information on Blue Origin’s Affirmative Action Plans, or applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the application and/or interview process, please contact us at [email protected]. Please note this is a publicly managed inbox. Please do not include any personal medical information in your request.

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