# System Engineer - Safety / Fault Protection at Space Kinetic > United States · Unspecified · Software engineering · open. Source: https://alderhq.app/jobs/greenhouse%3Aspacekinetic%3A5372364008 (read 2026-11-07). ## Facts (observed) - Company: [Space Kinetic](https://alderhq.app/companies/space-kinetic) - Location text: El Segundo, California; El Segundo, CA - Where it can be done from (inferred): United States (evidence: "Location: El Segundo, California; El Segundo, CA") - Posted: 2026-07-28 (102 days ago) - First seen by alder: 2026-11-02 · last verified: 2026-11-04 - Reposted: 0 times · edited: 0 times - Apply on the employer's site: https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/spacekinetic/jobs/5372364008 ## Pay and sponsorship - Posted pay: $135k–$165k per year (from the listing's pay field) - Market band for similar posted roles (Los Angeles, n 514): p25 $120k, median $143k, p75 $163k ## Description (the employer's text) A New Paradigm For Space Operations. ### Who We Are Space Kinetic is a dual-use space technology startup building a completely new architecture for space operations – one that brings the advantages of proliferated drone technology (low-cost, operationally flexible, attainable, distributed) to space missions while reducing the ecosystem's reliance on consumable fuel. In a world where many companies are focused on incrementally improving the status quo, we are focused on creating something entirely different – an architecture underpinned by new first principles to meet the opportunities and challenges of the third space age head-on. Our goal is to move away from one-to-one space architectures – where each satellite in a constellation has one (or a small # of) primary payloads attached to the bus -- and unlock a ‘one-to-many’ system, where each satellite has a large number of payloads which can be deployed from their host spacecraft at high velocities without firing a thruster. This is not a role for someone looking for a traditional 40-hour work week. Space Kinetic is building ambitious, first-of-its-kind technology, and that requires urgency, ownership, and a high level of commitment to changing the foundational assumptions for everything we do in space. ### What You’ll Do We are seeking a System Engineer with a focus on Safety / Fault Protection to ensure our space vehicles can safely and reliably accomplish their missions. This role will identify mission risks, evaluate off-nominal conditions, and influence spacecraft architecture, verification planning, and fault-protection strategies for government space programs. ### Job Responsibilities - Perform hazard analyses, fault tree analyses, FMEAs, and other safety assessments. - Identify hazard controls, residual risks, and single-point, common-cause, and cascading failures. - Develop fault detection, isolation, containment, recovery, and safing requirements. - Evaluate spacecraft architecture, autonomy, modes, command paths, and off-nominal behavior. - Translate safety objectives into verifiable system and subsystem requirements. - Verify hazard controls through analysis, testing, simulation, and fault injection. - Support anomaly investigations, corrective actions, design reviews, readiness reviews, and customer safety reviews. - Maintain traceability across hazards, controls, requirements, procedures, and verification evidence. ### What It Takes - Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace, Systems, Electrical, Mechanical, or Computer Engineering or a related field. - 3–7 years of experience with spacecraft, launch vehicles, autonomous systems, or other safety-critical systems. - Experience in system safety, reliability, fault management, mission assurance, or spacecraft systems engineering. - Knowledge of spacecraft subsystem interactions and end-to-end vehicle operations. - Experience with fault protection, hazard assessments, fault tree analyses, FMEAs, or similar methods. - Experience developing and verifying technical requirements across multiple engineering disciplines. - Strong technical writing, communication, and risk-informed engineering judgment. ### What We’d Love - Experience with range safety and AFSPCMAN 91-710. - Knowledge of COTS space-rating assessments or low Earth orbit radiation risks. - Experience with spacecraft fault management, autonomous safing, or mission-recovery architectures. - Experience with fault injection, hardware-in-the-loop testing, Monte Carlo analysis, or mission simulations. - Experience supporting NASA, the Department of Defense, the Intelligence Community, or other government space programs. - Experience with MBSE and requirements tools such as Cameo, MagicDraw, SysML, DOORS, or Jama. - Active or previously held U.S. government security clearance. ### What We Offer - Equity-Based Compensation - 401(k) retirement plan with a 3.5% company match - Highly Competitive PTO - Paid company holidays + winter break - Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance - Unique Performance-based bonus opportunities ### ITAR Requirements To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about ITAR here. --- Data: alder (https://alderhq.app). Cite https://alderhq.app/jobs/greenhouse%3Aspacekinetic%3A5372364008 and the date you read it. Observed facts come from the employer's own listing; location reach, level, family and skills are inferences.