Senior Analyst, Deployable Structures

What you'll do:

Own the integrated FEM of the deployed assembly, incorporating structural element stiffness and mass properties from contributing subsystem teams and deployment mechanism boundary conditions.

Perform deployed-state structural performance analysis: modal survey prediction, static deflection under on-orbit loads (thermal, attitude control), and margin of safety verification.

Develop and maintain the structural requirements allocation, flowing from system-level performance requirements down to component-level stiffness, mass, and CTE requirements for each contributing team.

Lead model-test correlation at each level of the V&V test pyramid: update model parameters from test data, maintain a documented correlation record.

Perform deployment analysis (e.g., deployable element kinematics, tensioning loads, deployment force margins, system dynamics) in support of the Deployable Structures Test Engineer's test predictions.

Assess structural risk of design changes and interface deviations, and provide structural input to anomaly investigation teams.

Develop and maintain the structural analysis error budget, tracking margin consumption as design changes occur.

Required Qualifications:

BS or MS or Ph.D. in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent.

Proficiency in FEA structural analysis (Nastran, ANSYS, or equivalent) for modal, static, and linear dynamics problems.

Experience performing structural analysis for flight or high-reliability hardware, including margin of safety calculations and requirements compliance.

Experience with structural dynamics (modal analysis, frequency response, eigenvalue methods) not just static stress analysis.

Ability to build and maintain a system-level integrated FEM incorporating inputs from multiple contributing teams at different fidelity levels.

Preferred Qualifications:

Ph.D. strongly preferred for the senior-level scope.

Experience with large deployable structures (antennas, solar arrays, booms, or lightweight flexible systems) including specific modeling challenges: geometric nonlinearity, low-stiffness modes, and large-displacement effects.

Experience with model-test correlation methodology, updating model parameters from test data and bounding residual correlation uncertainty.

Familiarity with deployment dynamics simulation tools (multi-body dynamics, flexible-body simulation).

Experience with structural error budgeting or requirements allocation across a multi-team program.

Python or MATLAB scripting for pre/post-processing of analysis data.