Lead Payload Engineer

Description

EnVision has been selected by ESA’s Science Programme Committee as the fifth medium-class mission in the Agency’s Cosmic Vision plan, with a launch in the early 2030s from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou on an Ariane 64 launcher.

EnVision will be the first mission to investigate Venus from its inner core to its upper atmosphere, characterising the interaction between its different envelopes: its atmosphere, surface/subsurface and interior. It aims to provide a holistic view of Venus, studying the planet’s history, activity and climate.

EnVision’s science payload consists of a dual polarisation S-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), also operating as a microwave radiometer and altimeter, which will map the surface of Venus; three optical spectrometers (VenSpec-M, VenSpec-U and VenSpec-H) designed to observe the surface and atmosphere of Venus; and the subsurface radar sounder (SRS), a high-frequency (HF) sounding radar to probe the top kilometres of the subsurface. These are complemented by a radio science investigation exploiting the spacecraft telemetry, tracking and command (TT&C) system to map the planet’s gravity field and constrain its internal structure, and to measure the composition and structure of Venus’s atmosphere.

You will be responsible for the SAR instrument development activities and will report directly to the EnVision Payload Manager in the Projects Department within the Directorate of Science.

Duties

Within the Payload Team, you will be responsible for the timely development, verification and delivery of the SAR instrument, acting as the ESA focal point for the instrument, up to the end of commissioning.

Within the programme guidelines and constraints, your detailed duties will include:

• supporting the Payload Manager for the procurement of the SAR instrument: participating in the Tender Evaluation Board (TEB) evaluation, contract negotiation and, depending on the procurement approach, potentially running the contract;
• closely monitoring and controlling the progress of the payload definition, manufacturing and tests, including critical review of the instrument system and subsystems’ schedules to ensure their compatibility with the overall spacecraft schedule. This includes the active management of the schedule, with the implementation of mitigation activities in the event of delays;
• proactively managing the instrument risks;
• analysing the instrument’s requirements and resources to ensure that instruments are technically compatible with the EnVision scientific objectives, performances and overall mission design;
• controlling the overall instrument design definition and analysing the design and resource budgets to ensure their compliance with the functional and interface requirements;
• maintaining the instrument interface documentation, which define all interfaces between the instrument and the spacecraft, including ground support equipment and flight operation;
• selecting and coordinating the necessary engineering support from the Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality as required;
• organising interface meetings between the instrument team, ESA and the spacecraft prime contractor to ensure the clear definition of engineering interfaces and maintain consistency with the spacecraft interface and resources;
• in the event of interface requirement changes, preparing the ECRs (engineering change requests) to/from the instrument teams;
• managing the request for deviation/request for waiver (RfD/RfW) process in the event of non-compliances;
• organising the instrument reviews (preliminary design review (PDR), critical design review (CDR) and qualification review (QR) (if applicable), and Delivery Review Boards (DRBs)) for the various hardware and software deliverables as applicable;
• participating in instrument and spacecraft environmental tests’ test readiness reviews (TRRs), post-test reviews (PTRs) and hardware and facilities inspections as required;
• contributing to generic Section, Division and Department tasks, such as reporting, reviews and evaluations, as they arise.

At a later stage of the project, your duties will also include:

• reviewing the instrument user manual, which defines all the operational aspects and constraints of the instruments;
• reviewing the instrument test requirements and plans for qualification, acceptance and calibration;
• supervising the test programme implementation at instrument level;
• participating in the integration of the instrument into the spacecraft- and satellite-level testing, in close cooperation with the assembly, integration and testing (AIT) and operation teams, including the launch campaign and flight operations.

Technical competencies

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation
Operational Efficiency
Fostering Cooperation
Relationship Management
Continuous Improvement
Forward Thinking

For more information, please refer to ESA Core Behavioural Competencies guidebook

Education

A master’s degree, preferably in one of the following domains: spacecraft systems engineering, AIT (Assembly, Integration and Testing), electrical engineering and materials and processes, is required for this post.

Additional requirements

• Previous experience in materials qualifications for specific environments, as well as previous experience in SAR hardware and SAR procurement, is an asset.
• You shall be a team player with strong interpersonal skills.