GOES Satellite Operations Engineer - BUSASRC Federal Data Networks Corporation (DNC) is seeking a Satellite Operations Engineer, Specializing in Power, Thermal, Communication, and Telemetry & Command Subsystems for a position in Suitland, MD.Summary :This Satellite Operations Engineer position will join the Engineering and Mission Operations Support Services (EMOSS-VI) contractor team at the NOAA Satellite Operations Facility (NSOF) located on the Suitland Maryland Federal Center. This position will support the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Satellite and Product Operations’ (OSPO) engineers within the Mission Operations Division (MOD) with ground and fight systems continuously processing Earth and Space weather data from the LEO, GEO, and L1 constellations and their various instrumentation in support of customers such as the National Weather Service. This particular position will join a team of engineers primarily responsible for maintaining the health and safety and operational configuration of all the Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) constellations (both GOES-NOP and GOES-RSTU) to fulfill NOAA and Partner mission requirements.ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONSSatellite Operations Engineer position requires excellent technical skills to be applied in the areas of real-time on-orbit operations, power/thermal subsystem monitoring, auxiliary communication relay service support, spacecraft command/control, telemetry and operations procedure development, software test/command script development, and operations personnel training. Candidate must possess excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills. Must have capacity to learn and perform overall satellite systems engineering skills, which will include:
Monitoring the health and safety of GOES subsystems during day-to-day operations
Provide on-call, debugging, and investigation support to 24/7 operators and other engineers as needed to troubleshoot issues with onboard subsystems
Supporting special operations or system changes as needed to meet NOAA mission objectives, subsystem maintenance activities, recommended operating procedures, or flight rules. Includes planning, coordination, scheduling, simulation, notification, execution, and reporting.
Maintain proficiency utilizing ground system elements and tools related to flight subsystem support. Assist with related ground system failovers, maintenance, and updates as needed.
Specific tasks include :
Focused subsystem support for the GOES-NOP and GOES-RSTU constellation’s Power, Thermal, Auxiliary Communication Relays, and Telemetry and Command systems. End-to-end subsystem support including both flight and ground elements.
Timely response to system anomalies during on and off duty hours. Ensure subsystem health and safety then work toward restoration of National Weather Service science data flow.
Develop, document and maintain operational procedures for the 24/7 crews in the NSOF Satellite Operations Control Center (SOCC). Provide supplemental training to console operators as needed to maintain proficiency.
Coordinate with Mission Planning and Scheduling as needed for any commanding additions, modifications, or deletions
Ensure all recommended operations procedures, constraints, and flight rules are followed during the course of subsystem operations
Analyze short and long-term trending to detect potential problems
Prepare regular reports on system status and actions; as needed special event and anomaly reports; periodic and seasonal trend analysis
Support ground segment coordination of resources involving the subsystem operations
Review, control, or implement proposed changes to mission operations configured items and baselines using configuration management best practices
Propose new or execute improvements to processes and tools that will increase long term reliability, monitoring, and anomaly detection capability
Liaison with internal and external groups including Project/Program level and vendors
Communicate to all parties, including NOAA, NASA, DOD, and vendors on subsystem changes, activities, and calibrations
OTHER JOB FUNCTIONSThe primary focus of this position is to support the GOES subsystems on NOAA’s operational missions in support of the National Weather Service requirements. Additional support is required based on the evolution of NOAA’s flight and ground systems. Participation in early mission development, requirements definition, pre-launch, launch, and check out phases along with end-of-life decommissioning is also part of the job as it relates to the core mission objectives.
Provide input to feasibility studies, and evaluate mission requirements
Participate in reviews and Technical Interchange Meetings (TIMs)
Assist in the integration, testing and implementation into operations of new or upgraded ground systems including virtualization, modernization, enterprise solutions, or consolidations while minimizing impacts to operations and data
Participate in pre-launch end-to-end testing to validate tools and monitoring capabilities
Evaluate launch and early-orbit activities in preparation for handover to operations
Solicit, coordinate, and perform end-of-life subsystem testing prior to final decommissioning
Position will co-develop and execute a methodology for identifying, classifying and implementing a set of best practices that can increase the quality of the mission operations support services. Position will provide a historical overview of problems to assist in decision-making relative to operations effectiveness, process, or procedural changes over time.ASRC Federal and its Subsidiaries are Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, gender, color, age, sexual orientation, gender identification, national origin, religion, marital status, ancestry, citizenship, disability, protected veteran status, or any other factor prohibited by applicable law .Requirements :KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS and ABILITIES
Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering or equivalent, Computer Science, Information Systems, or other related disciplines
Minimum 2 to 5 years of related satellite operations engineering work experience. Higher level education may be used in-lieu of experience.
Highly Desired:
Current experience supporting the recent/future GOES-RSTU launches, orbit raising, and post-launch checkout periods
Experience and skills in software development and validation
Advanced use of Google Workspace and Microsoft tools; Excel, Visio, PowerPoint, Access
Ability to create and conduct informative and high-quality presentations on complex subjects
Work Environment and Physical Demands:Work in hybrid combination of typical onsite office building and remotely during a standard 40-hour week. Twenty-four hour on-call for satellite and ground system emergencies. Occasional deadlines or operational conditions require non-standard/longer hours or additional onsite support. Infrequent travel required.ASRC Federal and its Subsidiaries are Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, gender, color, age, sexual orientation, gender identification, national origin, religion, marital status, ancestry, citizenship, disability, protected veteran status, or any other factor prohibited by applicable law.
