Software and Integration Test Engineer

About the role

You will design test plans and test procedures to validate and verify spacecraft software and hardware, including rocket engines, inertial measurement units, star trackers, radar systems, sun sensors, thermal controllers, lidar, and guidance, navigation and control algorithms. You will develop software testing infrastructure and tests that facilitate verifying spacecraft system consistency across platforms with varying combinations of emulators and hardware. You will improve testing infrastructure capabilities to support both developer and automated testing needs, enabling tighter integration between developers and testers. You will execute test procedures manually where multi-million dollar spacecraft hardware is involved and report regressions, while ideally developing automated systems to follow manual testing closely. You will expand autonomous test suites that run nightly within a continuous integration pipeline across different test platforms to increase coverage across more systems. You will write bug tickets for software issues encountered during verification and develop automatic reporting tools to improve understanding of how passed and failed tests map to subsystem-level requirements.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Design test plans and test procedures to validate and verify spacecraft software and hardware, including rocket engines, inertial measurement units, star trackers, radar systems, sun sensors, thermal controllers, lidar, and guidance, navigation and control algorithms for autonomous lunar navigation and landing.
• Develop software testing infrastructure and tests within it to enable easy verification of spacecraft system behavior across platforms using varied combinations of emulators and spacecraft hardware.
• Improve software testing infrastructure capabilities to support both developer and automated testing needs, facilitating tighter integration between developers and testers.
• Execute test procedures manually where multi-million dollar spacecraft hardware is involved, report regressions, and ideally develop automated systems so that manual testing follows automated testing closely.
• Expand autonomous tests that run nightly within a continuous integration pipeline across different test platforms to increase test coverage across more systems.
• Write bug tickets when software issues are encountered during the verification process.
• Develop automatic reporting tools and mechanisms to enhance understanding of how passed and failed tests map to subsystem-level requirements.
• Benchmark and analyze spacecraft system performance across all flight modes.
• Help identify and resolve anomalous software behavior through collaborative investigation.
• Work with a small team of developers, engineers, and technicians to proactively solve problems found through testing the spacecraft software system.
• Manage and schedule test regressions and test resources effectively.
• Manage test software repositories for multiple projects to ensure organization and traceability.
• Perform acceptance tests and trace tested features back to requirements to ensure coverage and compliance.
• Collect, analyze, and present test metrics to stakeholders for informed decision-making.

Requirements

• Hold a bachelor's or graduate degree, ideally in a technical field.
• Bring a minimum of five years of relevant work experience to the role.
• Demonstrate proficiency with Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) principles and practices.
• Show proficiency with scripting languages, such as Python, to automate tasks and support testing.
• Prove ability to build and test distributed software and/or hardware systems in complex environments.
• Exhibit demonstrated ability to lead anomaly investigation activities involving multiple experts and stakeholders.
• Maintain strong attention to detail and the ability to follow complex test procedures accurately.
• Communicate effectively in a collaborative team environment and document findings thoroughly.

Nice to have

• Knowledge of formal software V and V processes to enhance verification rigor.
• Proficiency with software configuration management tools, such as git, for version control and collaboration.
• Experience with containers, for example Docker, and virtual machines, such as QEMU, to support diverse test environments.
• Experience with Linux and other embedded operating systems commonly used in spacecraft systems.
• Familiarity with coding safety standards, for example MISRA-C, to support robust software development.
• Familiarity with communication protocols such as CCSDS, Ethernet, RS-422, TCP/IP, I2C, QAM, RS-232, Spacewire, CAN, GPIO, IPC, MIL1553, and RS-485.
• Familiarity with electronic test equipment, including oscilloscopes, multimeters, and logic analyzers, to debug hardware and software interactions.
• Understanding of electrical circuit dynamics to diagnose issues in power and signal paths.
• Familiarity with environmental testing methods, such as EMC/EMI and thermal-vacuum testing, to validate hardware resilience.
• Familiarity with some of the systems that the software system drives, including multi-DOF spacecraft controls, thermal systems, RF communications systems, avionics systems, and power systems.

Practical notes

The good faith base salary range is $100,000 - $140,000 at the time of this posting, where you fall within the range depends on your experience, skills, and location. This range reflects base salary only and does not include benefits or bonus/incentive. This range may be adjusted in the future. Voyager offers a highly competitive total compensation package designed to support the well-being, growth, and success of employees, including flexible and comprehensive benefits, wellness programs, and voluntary resources. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, protected veteran status, or other characteristics protected by law. To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), applicants for this position must be a U.S. Person, defined as a U.S. Citizen, a lawful permanent resident of the U.S., or a protected individual as defined by 8 U2.S.C. § 1324b(a)(3). Applicants must be eligible to obtain any required export authorizations from the U.S. Department of State or the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Minority/Female/Disabled/Veteran

The statements contained in this job description are intended to describe the general content and requirements for performance of this job. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all job duties, responsibilities, and requirements. Management has the exclusive right to alter the scope of work within the framework of this job description at any time without prior notice.