Senior Flight Software Designer (6+ month Contract)

We’re on the hunt for a top-tier Flight Software Engineer for a 6+ month contract. Your focus will be on the development and maintenance of flight software and embedded Linux software for both space and ground-based assets across a growing fleet of spacecraft. You’ll be relied upon for input and decisions that will directly impact system design and operation.

Key Responsibilities:

- Design and develop reliable, high-quality software related to:
- Embedded Linux applications and platform software for both space and ground systems

- Flight software applications and services supporting spacecraft command and control, telemetry, fault detection and recovery, resource management, and on-orbit operations

- Linux-based development on Xilinx Zynq MPSoCs, Versal SoCs, and NVIDIA Jetson-class hardware

- Own and maintain embedded Linux build environments using OpenEmbedded/Yocto, including layers, recipes, system images, SDKs, package configuration, and build troubleshooting

- Design and integrate flight software interfaces with ground software, including HTTP APIs and ZeroMQ message buses using data formats such as Protocol Buffers

- Write thorough tests and documentation

- Participate in software design review and code review processes

- Work with electrical, digital design, ground software, and operations teams to identify required features and define the system architecture

- Provide technical leadership and mentorship to junior engineers

- Identify shortcomings in existing software components and direct future development efforts

Required Skills & Qualifications:

- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or equivalent

- 7+ years of embedded development experience, in Aerospace or relevant industry

- Strong software design and development skills, including architecture, algorithms, testing, and debugging

- Proficiency in C/C++, with experience developing reliable software for resource-constrained, mission-critical systems

- Strong embedded Linux experience, including application development, system integration, debugging, kernel modules, device trees, and drivers

- Experience owning and maintaining embedded Linux build systems using OpenEmbedded/Yocto

- Experience developing Linux-based software for platforms such as Xilinx Zynq MPSoCs, Versal SoCs, or comparable embedded Linux platforms

- Experience developing and integrating distributed software interfaces using technologies such as ZeroMQ, Protocol Buffers, and HTTP APIs

- Understanding of flight-software concerns such as fault tolerance, deterministic behaviour, resource constraints, and operational reliability

- Excellent communication skills

- Ability to effectively use git

Bonus Points:

- Master’s degree

- Experience developing software for aerospace applications

- Experience deploying and supporting containerized software using Kubernetes on embedded Linux systems

- Experience with NVIDIA Jetson-class hardware

- Experience developing multi-stage bootloaders

- Experience developing in Python

Employment Equity & Accommodation Statement 
Kepler Communications is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals, including women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, members of visible minorities, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities. 
 
If you require accommodation during any stage of the recruitment process, please contact our People & Culture team at [email protected], and we will work with you to meet your needs.