Flight Software Engineer

Welcome to Planet. We believe in using space to help life on Earth.

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. This constellation delivers an unprecedented dataset of empirical information via a revolutionary cloud-based platform to authoritative figures in commercial, environmental, and humanitarian sectors.

We are both a space company and data company all rolled into one.

Customers and users across the globe use Planet's data to develop new technologies, drive revenue, power research, and solve our world’s toughest obstacles.

As we control every component of hardware design, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering, our office is a truly inspiring mix of experts from a variety of domains.

We have a people-centric approach toward culture and community and we strive to iterate in a way that puts our team members first and prepares our company for growth.

Join Planet and be a part of our mission to change the way people see the world.

Planet is a global company with employees working remotely world wide and joining us from offices in San Francisco, Washington DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and The Netherlands.

About the Role :

Planet’s Flight Software Team is responsible for all of the embedded software complexity that goes into our fleet of Superdove, Skysat, Pelican, and Tanager satellites.

The software we build and maintain spans many functional verticals including navigation and avionics, payload control, radio software, and related tooling and infrastructure.

We work collaboratively with many other teams at Planet, including teams responsible for payload, EE, RF, and ground control software.

You’ll be a part of a team that builds, maintains, and operates these tools. Our mission is to offer a seamless interface that enables spacecraft operators, analysts, and engineers at Planet to interact reliably with our assets in space.

We strive to minimize operational burden and automate all aspects of satellite operations. In this role, you will tackle and solve a broad array of engineering problems in a fast-paced environment.

You will help specify and implement new APIs and improve existing ones, evaluate and choose appropriate software technologies for given use cases, and design and deploy critical infrastructure, all highly impactful to the success of Planet.

You will be a part of a team that supports, enables and engages with operators to iterate on these systems.

This role will require you to be physically present at our headquarters in San Francisco, CA, 3+ days a week.

Impact You’ll Own :

• Help conduct root cause investigations and develop code changes to address defects in RTOS and Linux-based application code
• Collaborate closely with senior engineers to design and implement software components which fulfill new satellite functionalities
• Implement features in existing codebases to characterize and improve fleet performance and robustness
• Collaborate closely with senior engineers to define specifications, develop component API’s, and write functional tests and documentation

What You Bring :

• Bachelor’s degree in CS, CE, EE, or a related field; OR equivalent work experience / self-directed study
• Excellent communication skills, including ability to explain technical concepts to a variety of stakeholders such as engineers, satellite operators, and engineering project managers
• 2 to 4 years of programming experience (professional, academic, F / OSS community, or self-directed) in at least one of the following language and environments : C / C++ on Linux, Python on Linux / MacOS / Windows, C / C++ for embedded systems (RTOS or bare-metal), Go / Rust / C# on Linux / MacOS / Windows
• Experience using version control systems such as Git, SVN, Mercurial

What Makes You Stand Out :

• Experience in multiple programming languages and operating systems.
• Linux / Unix systems programming experience such as memory-mapped files, network protocol development, process memory management, etc.
• Experience with RTOS and bare metal microprocessor development on platforms like STM32
• Experience writing software for FPGA softcores, RISC-V or otherwise
• Experience working on technically interdisciplinary teams or projects
• Experience managing work using ticket systems such as Jira, Github / Gitlab Issues, or similar
• Knowledge of containerization technologies like Docker / lxc

Benefits While Working at Planet :

• Comprehensive Health Plan
• Wellness program and onsite massages in specific offices
• Flexible Time Off
• Recognition Programs
• Commuter Benefits
• Learning and Tuition Reimbursement
• Parental Leave
• Offsites and Happy Hours
• Volunteering Benefits

Compensation :

The US base salary range for this full-time position at the commencement of employment is $114,100 - $142,600. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary short-term and long-term incentives (bonus and equity).

The final salary range is determined by job related experience, skills and location. The range displays our typical hiring range for new hire salaries in US locations only.

Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

This position requires access to export controlled technology, and as such, employment will be contingent upon the candidate’s ability to access EAR and / or ITAR controlled technology pursuant to an export license approved by the Bureau of Industry and Security and / or the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, if required.

Why we care so much about Belonging.

We’re dedicated to helping the whole Planet, and to do that we must strive to represent all of it within each of our offices and on all of our teams.

That’s why Planet is guided by an ultimate north star of Belonging, dreaming big as we approach our ongoing work with diversity, equity and inclusion.

If this job intrigues you, but you’re thinking you might not have all the qualifications, please... do apply! At Planet, we are looking for well-rounded people from around the world who can contribute to more ways than just what is listed in this job description.

We don’t just fill positions, we aspire to fulfill people’s careers, most excited about folks who are motivated by our underlying humanitarian efforts.

We are a few orbits around the sun before we get to where we want to be, so we hope you’re excited to come along for the ride.

EEO statement :

Planet is committed to building a community where everyone belongs and we invite people from all backgrounds to apply. Planet is an equal opportunity employer, and committed to providing employment opportunities regardless of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other protected classification, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. Know Your Rights.

Accommodations :

Planet is an inclusive community and we know that everyone has their own needs. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation during the hiring process, please reach out to accommodations@planet.

com or contact your recruiter with your request. Your message will be confidential and we will be happy to assist you.

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