VN 26/27 Mission Control Systems Operations Engineer

EUMETSAT operates a diverse fleet of twelve Earth observation satellites in Low Earth and geostationary orbits for its own purpose and on behalf of the EU Copernicus programme, including Meteosat Second and Third Generation, Metop First and Second generation, Copernicus/Sentinel-3 and Copernicus/Sentinel-6 satellites.

With the continuing deployment of Meteosat Third Generation, Metop Second Generation and Copernicus/Sentinel-3 satellites in 2026, and subsequent launches of Copernicus/CO2M and EPS-Sterna satellites, this fleet will incorporate next-generation Earth observation technologies and comprise over twenty operational satellites by 2030. Further launches are foreseen in the next decade for Meteosat and Metop, and for potential new satellite systems currently under assessment.

Within the Flight Operations (FLO) Division and reporting to the Mission Control Systems Manager, the Mission Control Systems Operations Engineer conducts operations of mission control systems for EUMETSAT and EUMETSAT-operated Copernicus satellite systems, coordinates system-wide activities related to the mission control systems for satellite monitoring and control, and supports the operations preparations of mission control systems for new satellite systems.

• Lead the Copernicus mission control operations team responsible for the coordination of monitoring and control operations and maintenance activities across EUMETSAT and EUMETSAT-operated Copernicus satellite systems;
• Conduct operations of mission control systems across EUMETSAT and EUMETSAT-operated Copernicus satellite systems, including:
  • planning, scheduling and coordinating routine and special operations;
  • anomaly investigation and resolution of contingencies, including provision of on-call support;
  • configuration control and change management;
• Maintain operations procedures, system databases and other operations products for operational mission control systems for satellite systems;
• Manage system elements supporting monitoring and control of satellite systems (e.g. tools for procedure development and execution, database maintenance, data analysis, etc.);
• Perform evaluation and trend analysis to monitor the performance and behaviour of operational mission control systems;

• Assist in the management of interfaces with external operational entities supporting, monitoring and controlling of satellite systems (e.g. ESA/ESOC, S-band ground station network providers, etc.);
• Support the definition, design, development and testing of evolutions for existing mission control systems;
• Participate in and, where appropriate, lead mission control systems operations preparation activities for the launch, commissioning and routine operations of recurrent spacecraft;
• Support the definition, development and verification of mission control systems of future EUMETSAT and Copernicus satellite systems (e.g. based on SCOS, EGOS-CC, etc.);
• Assist in the provision of training for operations team personnel.

• Demonstrated professional experience in operations and operations preparation of operational satellite systems, preferably for Earth-observation;
• Minimum five years of experience in the development, maintenance and/or operations of mission control systems;
• Practical experience in formal integration, verification and validation testing of mission control systems;
• Ability to plan and implement activities, prioritising according to constraints, inter-dependencies and opportunities;
• Ability to coordinate and manage multi-cultural teams of internal staff and external engineering support services.
• Good interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate ideas and issues clearly and concisely with others.