What are the responsibilities and job description for the GNC Engineer - Spacecraft Controls & Electromagnetic Actuation position at Approach Venture?
GNC Engineer - Develop Controls for Spacecraft That Assemble Themselves in Orbit
Golden, CO | On-site
Opportunity Summary
A venture-backed space startup is building modular spacecraft that dock and latch together in orbit using electromagnetic actuation, creating vehicles far larger than anything that fits inside a rocket fairing. Controlling a spacecraft whose mass, inertia, and shape change as it assembles is an open problem, and this team is solving it with flight hardware.
We are adding a talented early-career GNC engineer to a strong, senior controls team. You will work across attitude control, estimation, and nonlinear control of electromagnetic actuators, taking algorithms from simulation into flight software and hardware-in-the-loop testing. The bar is high, and in return you will get real ownership and direct mentorship from engineers who have flown GNC systems.
About Us
We are a venture-backed space technology startup in Golden, Colorado building modular spacecraft that launch as compact units and join together in orbit to form larger, more capable vehicles. The core technology has already flown in multiple on-orbit and microgravity demonstrations, and a newly outfitted facility is supporting the move toward larger hardware and a free-flying demonstration. The team is small and senior, with engineers who have shipped hardware at leading launch, satellite, and defense companies, and every engineer owns a real piece of the vehicle.
Job Duties
$100,000 - $140,000 equity
ITAR Requirement
This position requires access to technical data controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Applicants must be U.S. persons (U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, refugees, or asylees) or eligible to obtain the required U.S. Department of State authorization.
Golden, CO | On-site
Opportunity Summary
A venture-backed space startup is building modular spacecraft that dock and latch together in orbit using electromagnetic actuation, creating vehicles far larger than anything that fits inside a rocket fairing. Controlling a spacecraft whose mass, inertia, and shape change as it assembles is an open problem, and this team is solving it with flight hardware.
We are adding a talented early-career GNC engineer to a strong, senior controls team. You will work across attitude control, estimation, and nonlinear control of electromagnetic actuators, taking algorithms from simulation into flight software and hardware-in-the-loop testing. The bar is high, and in return you will get real ownership and direct mentorship from engineers who have flown GNC systems.
About Us
We are a venture-backed space technology startup in Golden, Colorado building modular spacecraft that launch as compact units and join together in orbit to form larger, more capable vehicles. The core technology has already flown in multiple on-orbit and microgravity demonstrations, and a newly outfitted facility is supporting the move toward larger hardware and a free-flying demonstration. The team is small and senior, with engineers who have shipped hardware at leading launch, satellite, and defense companies, and every engineer owns a real piece of the vehicle.
Job Duties
- Develop attitude determination and control algorithms in C and Python for de-tumble, pointing, slewing, and momentum management
- Model and control spacecraft whose inertia and structure change as modules join and separate
- Design and tune nonlinear controllers for electromagnetic actuators used in docking and relative motion
- Build simulations and run 6DOF Monte Carlo analyses to verify performance
- Take algorithms into flight software and validate them through hardware-in-the-loop testing
- Support sensor and actuator trade studies and help define GNC requirements
- Support flight operations and on-orbit anomaly investigations
- Bachelor's degree in aerospace, mechanical, or electrical engineering, physics, mathematics, or a related field
- 2 years of professional or graduate research experience in controls, GNC, or dynamics
- Strong grounding in control theory, including nonlinear control
- Software development experience in C and Python
- Track record that shows you are performing well ahead of your years of experience
- Comfortable as a generalist who can pick up new areas quickly
- U.S. person status (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, refugee, or asylee) required under ITAR
- Experience with electromagnets, electromagnetic actuators, or magnetic force and torque modeling
- Graduate research (MS or PhD) in controls, electromagnetics, or related areas
- Spacecraft ADCS experience, including attitude dynamics, quaternion kinematics, and state estimation such as MEKF
- Experience with flexible-body or multi-body dynamics
- Hardware-in-the-loop testing or real-world deployment of control algorithms
- Experience with Git and collaborative software workflows
- Work on a GNC problem that has no textbook answer: controlling spacecraft that reconfigure in orbit
- Learn directly from senior GNC engineers while owning meaningful parts of the system
- Take your algorithms from simulation to flight hardware
- Early-employee stock options with meaningful upside as the platform moves toward operational missions
- Fast growth on a small team, where engineers who deliver take on broader ownership quickly
- Medical, dental, and vision coverage
- Short- and long-term disability insurance and life insurance
- Paid parental leave
- Three weeks of paid vacation and 10 or more paid holidays annually
$100,000 - $140,000 equity
ITAR Requirement
This position requires access to technical data controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Applicants must be U.S. persons (U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, refugees, or asylees) or eligible to obtain the required U.S. Department of State authorization.
Salary : $100,000 - $140,000