Join SpaceX as a Senior Thermal Engineer to lead the thermal design and validation for Starship vehicles and hardware.
Posted by employer 4 months ago
First seen on Joblaze 4 months ago
Last verified on the company career page 1 day ago
Skills & Technologies
Requirements
- Experience
- 5+ years
- Education
- Bachelor's degree
- Visa
- Sponsorship available
Not disclosed in this posting: work arrangement.
Benefits
Joblaze summary
In the role of Senior Thermal Engineer at SpaceX, the individual will focus on the thermal design, testing, and validation of spacecraft and launch vehicles, ensuring optimal performance and reliability. Key skills include proficiency in engineering simulation software like MATLAB, along with experience in thermal and fluid analysis, particularly with tools such as Thermal Desktop and ANSYS Workbench. This position is suited for seasoned engineers with a strong background in aerospace systems and a commitment to meeting aggressive project timelines. The team is dedicated to advancing reusable space transportation technologies, contributing to SpaceX's ambitious goals.
Joblaze insights
- Listed about 4 months ago — first seen on Joblaze May 23, 2026. Last confirmed on SpaceX's careers page October 11, 2026.
- Salary band is in line with the typical range for comparable tech roles (median ~$130,000).
- Starts above 19% of 267 comparable senior other roles in United States that list Python we track (median $153,000 across 57 companies). See Python salary trends
- Python appears in 16.4% of 2456 comparable senior other roles in United States; ANSYS Workbench appears in 0.1% of 2456 comparable senior other roles in United States.
Quick facts
- What's the salary range?
- SpaceX lists $130,000–$180,000 for this role.
- How much experience is required?
- At least 5 years of relevant experience for this Sr. Thermal Engineer, Thermal & Fluid Analysis (Starship) role.
- What's the tech stack?
- Joblaze extracted these technologies from the posting: ANSYS Workbench, MATLAB, Python, Thermal Desktop.
- Does SpaceX sponsor work visas for this role?
- Yes — the posting indicates visa sponsorship is available for the right candidate.
- What seniority level is this role?
- SpaceX targets senior candidates for this position.
- Is this full-time or contract?
- Full-time for this Sr. Thermal Engineer, Thermal & Fluid Analysis (Starship) role at SpaceX.
From the original posting
SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.
SR. THERMAL ENGINEER, THERMAL & FLUID ANALYSIS (STARSHIP)
As a Senior Thermal Engineer on the Starship Thermal & Fluids analysis team, you are responsible for the thermal design, test, and validation of vehicles and hardware. You will make engineering decisions to improve vehicle performance and reliability to help create a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Own thermal design of spacecraft, launch vehicles, and hardware, from initial high-level analysis down to validation of performance with ground tests, flight, and orbital data.
- Automate workflow above to reduce engineering investment in per-mission analysis.
- Pursue performance/robustness improvements.
- Pursue operational simplicity and seek to reduce burden on other groups at SpaceX.
- Produce quality documentation of your work to reduce miss-rate and improve efficiency.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline.
- 5+ years of professional experience using engineering simulation software such as MATLAB.
PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
- Master’s degree in an engineering discipline.
- 5+ years professional experience with thermal or fluid analysis.
- Strong understanding of spacecraft and/or launch vehicle systems.
- Experience with 0-D and 1-D thermal/fluid networks.
- Experience with Thermal Desktop and/or ANSYS Workbench.
- Working knowledge of scripting languages (specifically Python).
- Excellent oral and written communication skills.
- Ability to deliver against an aggressive schedule.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
- Must be available to work extended hours and weekends as needed.
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:
Pay range:
Thermal Engineer/Senior: $130,000 - $180,000/per year
Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.
ITAR REQUIREMENTS:
Standard company text repeated across SpaceX's postings is omitted here.