Sr Principal Thermal Engineer, Project Sunrise Orbital Data Centers

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 Advanced Concepts and Enterprise Engineering (ACE), supporting Blue Origin’s mission of millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. The team fosters innovation and drives engineering workflows of the future, shared solutions and standards, simplicity and lower costs, and manufacturable design.

Join Blue Origin as we build infrastructure in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re developing a satellite constellation of orbital data centers designed to transform how compute infrastructure is deployed and leveraged.

You will own one of the most challenging subsystems on a space data center - the thermal architecture – responsible for design, analysis, testing, and flight execution of the thermal control systems for one of the highest-power spacecraft ever built. You will be expected to operate with a high degree of autonomy, leading this critical effort from the front. It's a hands-on leadership role that combines deep individual technical contribution and leading the thermal engineering team. Expect to pursue novel concepts, test them fast on the ground, and validate them in orbit.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

- Own the thermal architecture: active and passive thermal control across the spacecraft.
- Design the thermal systems from the computing interface: to the radiator
- Lead the hard trades: performance, mass, cost, reliability, manufacturability, schedule, and operational constraints.
- Push novel concepts: prototype rapidly, test on the ground, and validate in orbit.
- Model and correlate: build and correlate thermal models for spacecraft, payloads, and subsystems against real test and flight data.
- Deliver flight hardware end to end: concept through manufacturing, integration, test, qualification, and launch, improving across successive spacecraft.

Minimum Qualifications:

- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline, or equivalent experience.
- 10+ years of hands-on thermal engineering: design, analysis, hardware development, and test.
- Strong command of thermal analysis tools such as Thermal Desktop, Ansys, or equivalent.
- Experience with passive and active thermal control in a demanding environment: space, power, automotive, data center, food/manufacturing, or petroleum.
- Comfortable leading and mentoring junior engineers while staying deeply hands-on.
- Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Preferred Qualifications:

- Experience formally leading a thermal engineering team.
- Experience with a variety of spacecraft or aircraft thermal management approaches and components: cold plates, coolant loops, pumps, heat exchangers, thermal interfaces, insulation, heaters, large lightweight deployable radiators, heat pipes, oscillating heat pipes, and vapor chambers.
- Experience with high-power thermal systems: pumped fluid loops, large radiators, industrial heat exchangers, data center cooling, power-plant systems, automotive thermal, refrigeration, or petroleum process systems.
- Experience rapidly leading development from architecture through qualification and production or flight.
- Familiarity or fluency with AI tools and their application for design optimization or analysis.
- Master's or Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline with a focus on thermal sciences.

Base Pay Range for:
CO applicants is $205,695.00 - $287,971.95
WA applicants is $209,650.00 - $293,509.65

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, 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.
- Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
- 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.