(Senior) Engineer, Payload Network & Timing, meoSphere
SES S.A Brazil, Long Beach, CA, United States
(Senior) Engineer, Payload Network & Timing, meoSphere
Requisition Number: 19751
Contract Type: Permanent
Location(s): Long Beach, CA, US Betzdorf, LU
Programme Description
meoSphere is SES’s next-generation Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellite constellation, designed to deliver secure connectivity services to government agencies, enterprises, and commercial customers. It will also provide high-speed broadband internet to eliminate global connectivity dead zones.
To accelerate development timelines, reduce costs, and ensure quality, SES is internalizing a critical segment of the satellite supply chain: the final integration of partner satellite platforms with SES’s software-defined payloads, all within a cutting‑edge manufacturing and test facility.
Role Description Summary
This role sits at the
heart of a fully digital, software‑defined satellite payload . You will architect the
network fabric and timing backbone
that makes regenerative processing, beamforming, and inter‑satellite routing behave as a
single coherent machine —with deterministic performance, timing discipline, and zero tolerance for ambiguity.
If you enjoy designing systems where
physics, networking, and real‑time behaviour collide , this role gives you direct ownership of one of the hardest problems in modern space payloads.
Key Responsibilities
The payload timing architecture end‑to‑end:
You define and own
PTP (IEEE 1588v2) and SyncE
across distributed on‑board nodes, including master/slave hierarchies, clock discipline, and holdover behaviour. The payload works—or fails—based on your decisions.
The internal payload network fabric:
You architect the
L2/L3 switching and routing logic
that moves traffic deterministically between
On‑Board Processing ,
Digital Beamforming ,
Service Links ,
Feeder Links , and
Optical Inter‑Satellite Links .
Deterministic performance under real load:
You design
QoS classes and shaping policies , then validate them under congestion. Jitter, wander, latency, and packet loss are not abstract metrics—they are first‑class design constraints.
Technical leadership by design authority:
You are the payload’s reference for
networking and timing . You drive architecture trade‑offs, own interface definitions, and make decisions that scale from lab bring‑up to flight hardware.
Competencies, Qualifications & Experience
Degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Telecommunications, Physics, or a related field.
Strong experience designing and owning
timing‑critical and/or high‑performance networked systems , with direct responsibility for correctness, stability, and runtime behaviour.
Deep hands‑on expertise with
precision time and synchronization
technologies, including
IEEE 1588v2 (PTP)
and
SyncE , and a solid understanding of clock hierarchy, discipline, and holdover behaviour.
Proven ability to architect and reason about
L2/L3 networks
in complex systems, including
routing, switching, VLANs, multicast , and deterministic traffic behaviour.
Experience designing and validating
QoS and traffic shaping
mechanisms under congestion and stress conditions.
Practical exposure to
high‑throughput data‑plane processing , such as
DPDK, XDP , or equivalent high‑speed packet processing frameworks.
Strong system‑level mindset: able to translate requirements into
clean architectures , make sound trade‑offs, and document interfaces clearly.
Comfortable acting as a
technical authority
in a focused domain, driving decisions and aligning other engineers around a coherent design.
Nice to Have
Experience working on
distributed, real‑time, or hardware‑adjacent systems
where latency, jitter, and determinism are first‑order constraints.
Hands‑on use of
traffic generation and analysis tools
(e.g., Spirent, Ixia) and familiarity with
jitter / wander characterization .
Background in space, aerospace, telecom, or other safety‑critical or mission‑critical environments where systems must work exactly as designed.
Track record of simplifying complex systems without hiding risk or deferring hard problems.
What Success Looks Like
The payload maintains
tight frequency and phase alignment
across distributed nodes—even through mode changes and degraded conditions.
Traffic flows are
predictable, deterministic, and debuggable
under peak load.
The network architecture scales cleanly across payload functions without timing hacks or hidden coupling.
Other engineers trust your designs because they are
simple where possible, precise where required .
Other Key Requirements
Eligibility for ESA/EU/NATO/National SECRET personnel security clearances. Candidates must be prepared to undergo a security clearance procedure, as this position may require holding such clearance, is considered an asset.
Willing to work at least 60% onsite from office
Able to travel nationally & internationally
SES and its Affiliated Companies are committed to providing fair and equal employment opportunities to all. We are an Equal Opportunity employer and will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, genetic information, protected veteran status, disability, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal law.
For more information on SES, click here.
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Requisition Number: 19751
Contract Type: Permanent
Location(s): Long Beach, CA, US Betzdorf, LU
Programme Description
meoSphere is SES’s next-generation Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellite constellation, designed to deliver secure connectivity services to government agencies, enterprises, and commercial customers. It will also provide high-speed broadband internet to eliminate global connectivity dead zones.
To accelerate development timelines, reduce costs, and ensure quality, SES is internalizing a critical segment of the satellite supply chain: the final integration of partner satellite platforms with SES’s software-defined payloads, all within a cutting‑edge manufacturing and test facility.
Role Description Summary
This role sits at the
heart of a fully digital, software‑defined satellite payload . You will architect the
network fabric and timing backbone
that makes regenerative processing, beamforming, and inter‑satellite routing behave as a
single coherent machine —with deterministic performance, timing discipline, and zero tolerance for ambiguity.
If you enjoy designing systems where
physics, networking, and real‑time behaviour collide , this role gives you direct ownership of one of the hardest problems in modern space payloads.
Key Responsibilities
The payload timing architecture end‑to‑end:
You define and own
PTP (IEEE 1588v2) and SyncE
across distributed on‑board nodes, including master/slave hierarchies, clock discipline, and holdover behaviour. The payload works—or fails—based on your decisions.
The internal payload network fabric:
You architect the
L2/L3 switching and routing logic
that moves traffic deterministically between
On‑Board Processing ,
Digital Beamforming ,
Service Links ,
Feeder Links , and
Optical Inter‑Satellite Links .
Deterministic performance under real load:
You design
QoS classes and shaping policies , then validate them under congestion. Jitter, wander, latency, and packet loss are not abstract metrics—they are first‑class design constraints.
Technical leadership by design authority:
You are the payload’s reference for
networking and timing . You drive architecture trade‑offs, own interface definitions, and make decisions that scale from lab bring‑up to flight hardware.
Competencies, Qualifications & Experience
Degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Telecommunications, Physics, or a related field.
Strong experience designing and owning
timing‑critical and/or high‑performance networked systems , with direct responsibility for correctness, stability, and runtime behaviour.
Deep hands‑on expertise with
precision time and synchronization
technologies, including
IEEE 1588v2 (PTP)
and
SyncE , and a solid understanding of clock hierarchy, discipline, and holdover behaviour.
Proven ability to architect and reason about
L2/L3 networks
in complex systems, including
routing, switching, VLANs, multicast , and deterministic traffic behaviour.
Experience designing and validating
QoS and traffic shaping
mechanisms under congestion and stress conditions.
Practical exposure to
high‑throughput data‑plane processing , such as
DPDK, XDP , or equivalent high‑speed packet processing frameworks.
Strong system‑level mindset: able to translate requirements into
clean architectures , make sound trade‑offs, and document interfaces clearly.
Comfortable acting as a
technical authority
in a focused domain, driving decisions and aligning other engineers around a coherent design.
Nice to Have
Experience working on
distributed, real‑time, or hardware‑adjacent systems
where latency, jitter, and determinism are first‑order constraints.
Hands‑on use of
traffic generation and analysis tools
(e.g., Spirent, Ixia) and familiarity with
jitter / wander characterization .
Background in space, aerospace, telecom, or other safety‑critical or mission‑critical environments where systems must work exactly as designed.
Track record of simplifying complex systems without hiding risk or deferring hard problems.
What Success Looks Like
The payload maintains
tight frequency and phase alignment
across distributed nodes—even through mode changes and degraded conditions.
Traffic flows are
predictable, deterministic, and debuggable
under peak load.
The network architecture scales cleanly across payload functions without timing hacks or hidden coupling.
Other engineers trust your designs because they are
simple where possible, precise where required .
Other Key Requirements
Eligibility for ESA/EU/NATO/National SECRET personnel security clearances. Candidates must be prepared to undergo a security clearance procedure, as this position may require holding such clearance, is considered an asset.
Willing to work at least 60% onsite from office
Able to travel nationally & internationally
SES and its Affiliated Companies are committed to providing fair and equal employment opportunities to all. We are an Equal Opportunity employer and will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, genetic information, protected veteran status, disability, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal law.
For more information on SES, click here.
#J-18808-Ljbffr