Sr. Principal Engineer, Spacecraft Health & Observability

Application close date:

Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight! 

This role is part of Advanced Concepts and Enterprise Engineering (ACE), supporting Blue Origin’s mission of millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. The team fosters innovation and drives engineering workflows of the future, shared solutions and standards, simplicity and lower costs, and manufacturable design.

Join Blue Origin as we build infrastructure in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re developing a satellite constellation of orbital data centers, Sunrise, designed to transform how compute infrastructure is deployed and leveraged

As a Principal Engineer for Fleet Health & Observability, you will be the single point of ownership for answering the critical question: "Is our constellation healthy?" You will architect the systems that monitor our spacecraft and high-performance compute payloads, bridging the gap between the subsystem hardware experts and the Mission Operations team that relies on actionable, real-time data. This role requires a unique blend of deep software engineering expertise and a strong systems-level understanding of spacecraft.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Own the end-to-end spacecraft and compute health monitoring architecture: define what gets monitored, how anomalies are detected, and how health data flows from on-board sensors through telemetry to ground-side dashboards and alerting.
• Design the health monitoring software system spanning both modules: Spacecraft Platform bus health (EPS, thermal, propulsion, GNC, comms) and Compute health (GPU status, power regulation, thermal, fabric connectivity, inference pipeline health).
• Define anomaly detection algorithms and trending methodologies; establish nominal operating envelopes for every monitored parameter, implement real-time limit checking on-board, and build predictive health models that identify degradation before failures occur.
• Own the health data pipeline, including on-board telemetry collection and prioritization, downlink bandwidth allocation, ground-side ingestion and storage, and fleet-wide health aggregation.
• Develop and maintain a holistic, fleet-level health assessment, aggregating data from individual spacecraft to provide a comprehensive view of the entire constellation's operational status and long-term performance trends.
• Interface with subsystem Responsible Engineers (REs) to define critical monitoring parameters and what constitutes anomalous behavior.
• Collaborate with Mission Operations on health alerting, escalation procedures, and anomaly investigation workflows.
• Work closely with the Flight Software organization on the implementation of the on-board health monitoring software.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 12+ years of professional software engineering experience, with deep expertise in monitoring systems, telemetry processing, or health management for complex systems.
• Proven experience designing and implementing health monitoring architectures for complex, distributed systems such as spacecraft, data center fleets, or autonomous vehicles.
• Strong systems engineering judgment and the ability to understand complex hardware subsystems.
• Experience working with time-series data systems (e.g., Prometheus, InfluxDB), statistical process control, and predictive maintenance algorithms.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's or Ph.D. in a relevant engineering or scientific field.
• Direct experience with spacecraft health monitoring or Fault Detection, Isolation, and Recovery (FDIR) systems.
• Transferable experience from adjacent industries, such as health monitoring for autonomous vehicles, industrial control systems, or SRE/observability for hyperscale hardware fleets.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex technical projects and influence cross-functional teams without direct authority.
• Experience developing software in C++, Python, or other relevant languages for embedded or distributed systems.

Base Pay Range for:

CO applicants is $259,120.00 - $362,767.65
WA applicants is $264,103.00 - $369,743.85

Other site ranges may differ

Culture Statement

Don’t meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Export Control Regulations

Applicants for employment at Blue Origin must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e. current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Background Check

• Required for all positions: Blue’s Standard Background Check
• Required for Certain Job Profiles: Defense Biometric Identification System (DBIDS) background check if at any time the role requires one to be on a military installation
• Required for Certain Job Profiles: Drivers who operate Commercial Motor Vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) or combination of power unit and trailer that meets or exceeds 10,001 lbs. and/or transports placardable amounts of hazardous materials by ground in any vehicle on a public road while in commerce, may be subject to additional Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations including: Driver Qualification Files, Medical Certification (obtained before onboarding), Road Test, Hours of Service, Drug and Alcohol Testing, vehicle inspection requirements, CDL requirements (if applicable) and hazardous materials transportation/shipping training.
• Required for certain Job Profiles: Ability to obtain and maintain Merchant Mariner Credential, which includes pre-employment and random drug testing as well as DOT physical

Benefits

• Benefits include: Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability, 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%, and an Education Support Program.
• Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
• Paid Time Off: Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.
• Dependent on role type and job level, employees may be eligible for benefits and bonuses based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results, or other factors at the company's sole discretion. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and subject to change and cancellation. Please check with your recruiter for more details.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Blue Origin is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and is committed to attracting, retaining, and developing a highly qualified and dedicated work force. Blue Origin hires and promotes people on the basis of their qualifications, performance, and abilities. We support the establishment and maintenance of a workplace that fosters trust, equality, and teamwork. We provide all qualified applicants for employment and employees with equal opportunities for hire, promotion, and other terms and conditions of employment, regardless of their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin/ethnicity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic factors, military/veteran status, or any other status or characteristic protected by federal, state, and/or local law. Blue Origin will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state, and local laws, including the Washington Fair Chance Act, the California Fair Chance Act, the Los Angeles Fair Chance in Hiring Ordinance, and other applicable laws. For more information on “Know Your Rights,” please see here.

Affirmative Action and Disability Accommodation

Applicants wishing to receive information on Blue Origin’s Affirmative Action Plans, or applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the application and/or interview process, please contact us at EEOCompliance@blueorigin.com. Please note this is a publicly managed inbox. Please do not include any personal medical information in your request.