Space Ground System Solutions (SGSS), a subsidiary of Parsons, has an immediate full-time opening for a Spacecraft DevOps Engineer (SDE) starting onsite at our office in Alexandria, VA, and eventually working at our customer site in Washington, DC. We are seeking a highly motivated SDE eager to apply their technical skills to the growing field of space technology. This role will be responsible for supporting spacecraft development, integration, testing, and operations through automation, continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipelines, and infrastructure management. The SDE will work alongside the software team to maintain and support the autonomy of the spacecraft ground system & will review and analyze logs, trends, and other tools to troubleshoot spacecraft and ground system issues. This position will also interface with software team, spacecraft owners, and Tier 2 support team; create and maintain status tracking documentation in order to effectively report spacecraft and ground status to external mission partners and government partners; create and maintain spacecraft and ground operations procedures; create, modify and maintain software scripts and procedures used in automated satellite tracking and monitoring; participate in the testing of new software baselines, support testing rehearsals, and daily DR tracking; and serve as part of an on-call team and respond to critical errors at any time of the day.
REQUIRED SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS
- Must be a US citizen
- Ability to obtain TS/SCI security clearance required
- Bachelor's degree in a scientific discipline or a minimum of 5 years' experience in the command and control of satellites
- Experience with Linux or similar operating systems
- Experience or classwork covering interacting with databases (examples: Oracle, Sybase, MySQL, etc.)
- Excellent troubleshooting and creative thinking skills
- Familiarity with basic scripting or automation (e.g., Python, Bash)
- Basic understanding of version control systems like Git
- Willingness to learn and assist with tools such as Jenkins, Docker, or cloud platforms
- Eagerness to learn about satellite systems, telemetry, or mission control operations
- Strong communication and teamwork skills, with the ability to follow guidance from senior engineers and government partners
PREFERRED SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS
- Understanding of networking concepts, system monitoring, and basic IT infrastructure
- Knowledge of industry practices, techniques, standards and proficiency with C, C++, Java and other high-level languages
- Experience in the resolution of technical problems and the development of systems for use in spacecraft communication is desirable
- Previous experience providing engineering in satellite ground station and instrument control systems
- Experience relevant to satellite communication systems is especially desirable
- Knowledge of spacecraft telemetry, tracking, and control (TT&C) systems
- Willingness to support spacecraft operations at various operations centers at the Naval Research Laboratory
Space Ground Systems Solutions (SGSS), a wholly owned subsidiary under the Parsons Corporation, is passionate about making our nation the undisputed leader in Space and has emerged as a leader in the development of cutting-edge solutions for the Department of Defense and Intelligence Community.
SGSS believes in taking care of their employees by offering:
- ALL benefits fully funded, for your entire family
- this includes Medical/Dental/Vision/Group Life/STD/LTD - no employee premiums
- SGSS funded HSA (Health Savings Account) provided
- with SGSS funding the maximum amount allowed by the IRS
- Retirement Savings Plan (RSP/401k) with a 20% annual company contribution - no employee contribution required
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If this position requires a government clearance, the applicants selected will be subject to a government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for accessing classified information.
Each Division of Parsons is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All divisions are committed to making employment decisions based on valid requirements, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability, or any other status protected by state, local or federal law. For more information, please visit
If the offer is accepted for this position the candidate would be required to successfully complete drug screen and background check.