MEO Missile Warning & Tracking (MWT) Modeling & Simulation (M&S) Engineer

The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation’s space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space— delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you’ll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators. Join us and take your place in space.

The Defense Systems Group (DSG) provides analysis-based decision support to senior leaders on space architectures, policy and strategy, technology development, warfighter capability enablers, systems integration, defense industrial base, and threat reduction to help shape existing and future space missions across the national security space (NSS) enterprise. DSG is unique at Aerospace as it not only directly supports major customers, including the U.S. Space Force, U.S. Space Command, Air Force Material Command, and senior leadership at the Pentagon, but also provides a broad range of technical support across the national space enterprise, maintaining vertical responsibilities with customers’ portfolios as well as horizontal, matrixed responsibilities across the corporation. Additionally, DSG provides deep technical expertise to the Space Force Space Systems Command (SSC) in the conception, design, acquisition, launch and operations of satellite, launch vehicle, ground control, and range systems.

The Missile Warning and Tracking (MWT) mission is undergoing its biggest architectural shift in a generation — moving from single satellite architectures to distributed and connected constellations to perform a coordinated mission. Given this shift, the ability to predict, model, and verify performance across a multi-constellation architecture is central to meeting mission needs. Together with government and industry partners, the MWT MEO Systems program office is shaping the design, development, and fielding of a next-generation constellation of missile warning and tracking satellites in medium Earth orbit (MEO). As the MEO Missile Warning & Tracking (MWT) Modeling & Simulation (M&S) Engineer you will play a pivotal role in developing and applying key modeling, simulation, and analysis capabilities needed to define, analyze, and verify mission payload, constellation, and enterprise-level performance across the proliferated Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR) MEO architecture.

This is a unique opportunity to shape M&S capability development across multiple levels of the architecture simultaneously — from detailed mission payload performance modeling to constellation-level tactics and enterprise-level integration — in direct support of verification and validation (V&V) for a program spanning multiple contractors and epochs. You'll act as a key Aerospace technical contributor and liaison to the government on MWT M&S, trusted to develop, mature, and apply modeling capabilities while working closely with the acquisition program office (SSC/SYD 84/MT), the SETA systems engineering leads, and Epoch 1, Epoch 2, and future Epoch 3 contractors to provide credible, decision-quality insight into system performance throughout the acquisition lifecycle.

The selected candidate will be required to work full-time, on-site at our facility in El Segundo, CA or Colorado Springs, CO

What You'll Be Doing

- Develop and apply enterprise-level simulation capabilities to assess constellation and mission-level performance across multiple MEO vendors and epochs
- Lead or support mission payload performance modeling, including image processing and 2D tracking simulation, to verify contractor-claimed performance against independent, government-trusted analysis
- Develop and maintain software supporting the verification and validation (V&V) of mission payload, constellation, and enterprise-level performance requirements
- Serve as a technical resource to the government test lead and government chief engineer on M&S-based performance assessments, in coordination with the Aerospace Epoch leads
- Proactively identify modeling gaps, performance risks, and opportunities for improved fidelity, and present findings to government decision makers
- Identify, leverage, and guide subject matter experts (SMEs) to assess the technical adequacy of contractor-delivered performance claims across multiple vendors
- Support modeling and simulation requests from external stakeholders across the broader MWT enterprise, including other Epoch programs, mission partners, and government analysis organizations
- Provide technical support to performance requirement verification, interface-driven modeling assumptions, and program systems engineering processes (e.g., engineering review boards, technical exchanges with key external organizations)
- Coordinate with the Aerospace program office leads and SETA systems engineering lead to ensure M&S approach remains aligned with broader program and enterprise integration efforts

If you love turning complex physical phenomena into credible, decision-quality models — and want your analysis to directly shape how a major defense program verifies performance — this is that job.

What You Need to be Successful

Minimum Requirements for Project Engineer - Systems Engineering - Acquisition and Systems Engineering:

- Bachelor's degree in a STEM field or other relevant field is required
- 6 or more years of progressively more responsible experience in modeling and simulation, systems engineering, or related technical analysis is required
- Experience with modeling and simulation, including EO/IR Payload Performance, image processing, 2D/3D tracking or kill chain modeling
- Hands-on experience with modern software development including programming in Python, C/C++, Java, or an equivalent programming language
- Demonstrated ability to navigate complex, multi-stakeholder environments, including differing perspectives on roles, responsibilities, and technical approach
- Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills for interactions at all levels of corporate and government leadership
- Demonstrated ability to work adaptively on multiple tasks in a small, diverse, geographically distributed team in a fast-paced environment
- Ability to travel domestically as needed to support program activities, typically 4–6 times per year
- This position requires a current and active Secret clearance with the ability to obtain and maintain a TS/SCI security clearance, which is issued by the U.S. government. U.S. citizenship is required to obtain a security clearance

How You Can Stand Out

It would be impressive if you have one or more of these:

- Advanced degree in a STEM field or other relevant field is strongly preferred
- Direct experience with space or ground system acquisition and development
- Strong knowledge of the Missile Warning & Tracking mission area, architecture, and sensor performance
- Experience with mission payload performance modeling for infrared or electro-optical sensing systems
- Experience with image processing, scene generation, or signal/clutter simulation techniques
- Experience with 2D or 3D tracking techniques
- Experience with sensor-to-shooter kill chain modeling and related assessments
- Proficiency with multi-domain or enterprise-level simulation frameworks
- Direct, embedded experience supporting a government program office or acquisition customer, with regular government interaction