Senior Mechanical Engineer
- Compensation
- CA$105K–CA$170K / yr
- Location
- Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Work setup
- Onsite
- Seniority
- Senior
- Employment
- Full time
- Experience
- 12+ years
- Category
- Industrial engineering
- Posted
Skills
Must have
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, or closely related engineering discipline
- 8–12+ years of progressive experience in mechanical/thermal/structural design for aerospace or space systems and a proven track record delivering flight-ready hardware
- Demonstrated success delivering flight-qualified or space-ready hardware
- Advanced proficiency in FEA tools (ANSYS, NASTRAN, Thermal Desktop, or equivalent) for thermal and structural analysis
- Experience across the full hardware lifecycle: concept, design, analysis, build, test, and qualification
- Strong background, and hands-on experience, in environmental testing (thermal vacuum, vibration, shock, etc.) and correlation with models
- Familiarity with spacecraft mechanical components, adhesives, thermal hardware, and industry standards or guidelines (e.g., NASA, ECSS, MIL-STD)
- Experience with requirements management, document management systems, and configuration control processes
Nice to have
- Experience with optical systems or precision mechanisms, including alignment, tolerancing, or qualification of high-accuracy assemblies for spaceflight or analogous environments.
- Having designed and built something that survived in space, with firsthand experience navigating the realities of launch loads, thermal extremes, and on-orbit operations.
- Experience with lunar rover design, development, and testing, including familiarity with the unique challenges of mobility systems, terrain interaction, thermal cycling, or reduced-gravity qualificati
Full description
Mission Control is based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, with a Rover Development Facility in St. Mary’s, Ontario. We’re looking for an enthusiastic and talented individual to join our team.
About Us
Mission Control empowers explorers by innovating to make advanced technology viable for use in space. Using Spacefarer™ and SpacefarerAI™, customers can simplify mission development and operations while unlocking the potential of new scientific and commercial opportunities on the Earth, Moon, Mars, and beyond. Spacefarer™ is being trusted for multiple missions to the Moon by mission controllers, scientists, and software developers who seek faster deployments, lower-cost mission development, and valuable data returns. Mission Control launched the Persistence Mission– Canada’s giant leap for AI in space – in June of 2025. Mission Control is inspired by a vision of the world in which access to space is ubiquitous and inspires all humans to treasure planet Earth and marvel at the universe.
Please visit our website to learn more about our team and ongoing projects: https://missioncontrolspace.com.
About the Job
Mission Control is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer to play a key technical leadership role in expanding our portfolio of autonomous and robotic space systems.
In this role, you will own the mechanical, structural, and thermal design and analysis of spaceflight hardware, guiding programs from concept through flight qualification. You will act as a subject matter expert (SME) in thermal and structural engineering, shaping design approaches, mentoring team members, and driving engineering excellence across projects. This role involves full-cycle project participation: from mission concept and requirements definition, through detailed design, analysis, testing, to integration and qualification.
You could be a good fit for this role if you are passionate about making an impact on the space sector and want to contribute to growing a small company from the ground up! You will be exposed to a wide variety of tasks with the potential to make a difference in the emerging space economy, so you must be a versatile self-starter who works well in teams and is not afraid to learn something new.
You will support and become a critical member of our team – a team of engineers, scientists, and space enthusiasts, who are passionate about being part of humanity’s next bold steps in space exploration, with a view to inspiring the next generation and the public through our work and our contributions to exploring the solar system!
Tasks and Responsibilities
As a Senior Mechanical Engineer, you will:
- Lead mechanical and thermal design for avionics, optical assemblies, mechanism or other mechanical subsystems tailored for the space environment (Earth orbit, lunar surface, deep space, planetary exploration, etc.)