Loft Orbital Solutions
Loft Orbital Solutions

Backend Engineer - Mission Operations Services

$140,000 – $190,000 per year
This job is no longer available and isn't accepting applications.

TLDR

Build Python microservices that command, monitor, and automate a satellite fleet, then use them in spacecraft operations through SatDevOps rotations.

Loft Orbital is looking for a Backend Engineer to join our Mission Operations Services (MOS) team. MOS owns the backend services that let Loft operators and customers command, monitor, and automate our satellite fleet through Cockpit, our mission control system. You’ll help build and scale the microservices that sit between ground and flight software, turning high-level intent into safe, reliable on-orbit operations.

You’ll work across multiple satellite platforms and collaborate closely with backend, flight software, embedded systems, test, and satellite operations teams. This is a hands-on engineering role where you’ll both build new systems and help debug live missions. We also offer SatDevOps training, so you don’t just write the tools - you actually use them to operate spacecraft.

If you’re excited about building backend systems that directly control satellites - and you like the idea of both shipping code and helping fly missions - we’d love to hear from you.

About this Role

  • Design and build backend tools for operations: services that power passes, autopilots, activities, and day‑to‑day satellite operations.
  • Handle commands and telemetry across multiple satellite buses and ground segment providers, with a strong focus on safety, robustness, and observability.
  • Write production backend code in Python, owning services end‑to‑end from design and implementation through deployment and maintenance.
  • Collaborate with flight software, embedded software, integration and test, and space infrastructure teams to integrate new satellite buses and capabilities into Cockpit.
  • Support internal users of Cockpit (operators, test engineers, solutions engineers) by improving APIs, workflows, and debugging tools.
  • Have the opportunity to take part in spacecraft operations through SatDevOps rotations, occasionally helping investigate anomalies and supporting real‑time incident response when needed.
  • Must Haves:

  • 4+ years of relevant backend software engineering experience in production environments
  • Solid Python development experience in a production environment.
  • Experience with Docker and container‑based development.
  • Hands‑on experience with backend web development frameworks (e.g., Django, Flask, FastAPI, etc.).
  • Proven API design skills (designing, documenting, and maintaining HTTP/GraphQL/REST‑style APIs).
  • Nice to Haves:

  • Experience with Django and/or GraphQL.
  • Strong database fundamentals and practical experience (e.g., Postgres, time‑series DBs).
  • Exposure to Kubernetes in production.
  • Familiarity with InfluxDB / TimescaleDB or other time‑series systems.
  • Background in mission‑critical, distributed, or real‑time systems (space or otherwise).
  • Some of Our Awesome Benefits:

  • 100% company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance option for employees and dependents
  • Flexible Spending (FSA) and Health Savings (HSA) Accounts offered with an employer contribution to the HSA
  • 100% employer paid Life, AD&D, Short-Term, and Long-Term Disability insurance
  • Flexible Time Off policy for vacation and sick leave, and 12 paid holidays
  • 401(k) plan and equity options
  • Daily catered lunches and snacks
  • International exposure to our team in France
  • Fully paid parental leave; 14 weeks for primary caregiver and 10 weeks for secondary caregiver
  • Carrot Fertility provides comprehensive, inclusive fertility healthcare and family-forming benefits with financial support
  • Off-sites and many social events and celebrations
  • Relocation assistance when applicable
  • Who We Are: Founded in 2017, Loft provides governments, companies, and research institutions with a fast, reliable, and simple way to deploy missions in orbit.

    We integrate, launch, and operate spacecraft, offering end-to-end missions as a service across Earth observation, IoT connectivity, on-orbit AI, national security missions, and more. Leveraging our existing space infrastructure and an extensive inventory of satellite buses, Loft is reducing years-long integration and launch timelines to months. With more than 30 missions flown, Loft’s flight heritage and proven technologies enable customers to focus on their mission objectives.

    With a growing fleet on track to reach 30 satellites by 2027, we are scaling up quickly across our offices in San Francisco, CA | Golden, CO | and Toulouse, France to meet accelerating demand for space infrastructure.

    Benefits

    Equity Compensation

    401(k) plan and equity options

    Free Meals & Snacks

    Daily catered lunches and snacks

    Health Insurance

    100% employer paid Life, AD&D, Short-Term, and Long-Term Disability insurance

    Learning Budget

    SatDevOps training

    Relocation assistance

    Relocation assistance when applicable

    Paid Parental Leave

    Fully paid parental leave; 14 weeks for primary caregiver and 10 weeks for secondary caregiver

    Paid Time Off

    Flexible Time Off policy for vacation and sick leave, and 12 paid holidays

    Remote-Friendly

    International exposure to our team in France

    Wellness Stipend

    Carrot Fertility provides comprehensive, inclusive fertility healthcare and family-forming benefits with financial support

    Loft Orbital Solutions simplifies space missions for governments, companies, and research institutions by providing end-to-end services for integrating, launching, and operating spacecraft. With a diverse focus ranging from Earth observation to national security, we drastically reduce launch timelines from years to months, making space more accessible than ever.

    Founded
    Founded 2016
    Employees
    51-200 employees
    Industry
    Internet Software & Services
    Total raised
    $16M raised
    View company profile
    No longer accepting applications

    This job is no longer available