Test Engineer

Cowboy Space Corp. is building the infrastructure to power and connect the orbital economy. Our satellites operate in Low Earth Orbit to collect sunlight and enable a new class of capabilities—from powering on-orbit compute, to transmitting energy via infrared lasers (space-to-earth and space-to-space), to delivering secure, high-bandwidth optical data. By rethinking how energy and data are generated and distributed in space, we’re unlocking entirely new ways to operate both in orbit and on Earth.

Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt (co-founder of Robinhood), Cowboy Space Corp. is backed by leading investors and built by a team from top aerospace and defense organizations. We’re moving quickly to solve complex technical challenges and build a new category of space infrastructure.

How fast we can test will set how fast this program moves. You are being hired to make that cycle short: build the stands, then run them. Fluids, mechanical, instrumentation, and controls, from blank sheet through commissioning into routine operation. Hardware and software, mechanical and electrical, testing components, engines, and full stages. When something misbehaves at two in the morning, you figure out whether it's the article, the stand, or the sensor.

Design and build fluid, mechanical, instrumentation, and control systems for component, engine, and stage-level test

Own P&IDs and take fluid system designs from schematic through procurement, fabrication, and checkout

Operate, maintain, and troubleshoot those systems once live, including the electrical and software side

Safely operate high-pressure and cryogenic systems: LOX, LNG, high-pressure gas

Write test procedures people can follow under pressure, then run them as test conductor

Perform hazard analysis and set the safety controls, exclusion zones, and abort criteria for your setups

Instrument tests so they answer the question: sensor selection, calibration, DAQ, and sample rates that survive the actual event

Reduce and present test data, and drive anomalies to root cause rather than a retest

Own your stand project schedules, especially the long-lead items nobody else is watching

4-8 years of relevant test experience: propulsion, fluids, energetics, or industrial systems where a mistake had physical consequences

First-principles depth in fluids, thermo, and structures, enough to reason about a system on a whiteboard before opening a tool

Experience creating P&IDs and building the system they describe

Experience integrating and troubleshooting mechanical and electronic systems together, because that's where the failures live

Experience with high-pressure or hazardous environments, and the habits that come with it

Experience writing and operating test procedures

Enough software to be dangerous: data reduction, control sequences, scripting. Python preferred

Self-direction: you'll often be the only person who knows the state of your system

Strong writing. A procedure and a test report are both writing jobs

Willingness to own large and small tasks alike, with a humble and positive attitude

Bachelor's degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering, or similar

Designing cryogenic fluid systems from scratch

Hands-on liquid rocket engine hotfire experience, on the stand rather than adjacent to it

LOX and methane or LNG specifics: cleanliness, materials compatibility, ignition

Control system work: PLCs, sequencing, interlocks, valve and actuator selection

Fabrication literacy (welding, machining, tube bending)

Structural, proof, burst, or environmental test experience alongside propulsion

This job description is a summary of the primary duties and responsibilities of the job and position. It is not intended to be a comprehensive or all-inclusive listing of duties and responsibilities. Contents are subject to change at Cowboy Space Corp.’s discretion.

Cowboy Space Corp. is an equal employment opportunity employer. We consider individuals for employment or promotion according to their skills, abilities and experience. Cowboy Space Corp. is committed to complying with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, age, national origin, ancestry, physical, mental or developmental disability, sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and medical conditions relating to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding), veteran status, military status, marital or registered domestic partnership status, medical condition (including cancer or genetic characteristics), genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, as well as any other category protected by federal, state or local laws.