Senior FPGA Engineer - Lunar Permanence

Job Title

Senior FPGA Engineer - Lunar Permanence

Role Summary

Design and verify FPGA firmware for avionics systems used on lunar landers. Work on HDL development, verification, and test for flight hardware that must operate in high-radiation and safety-critical environments.

Collaborate with systems, hardware, and software engineers and with external partners (including NASA and national team partners) to define requirements, execute verification plans, and support integration and test.

Experience Level

Senior — typically requires 8+ years of FPGA/ASIC design and verification experience.

Responsibilities

Primary responsibilities include:

• Define HDL and FPGA requirements with systems, hardware, and software stakeholders.
• Produce FPGA requirements documents and verification plans.
• Design, implement, verify, and document RTL modules for flight-grade systems meeting DAL A safety requirements.
• Create and maintain tests and testbenches; perform simulation and hardware verification.
• Debug failures in simulation and on hardware to root cause problems.
• Participate in design reviews and coordinate across engineering teams and external partners.
• Provide technical leadership within the team and communicate technical information clearly.
• Travel up to ~10% to other company locations for meetings or events.

Requirements

Minimum technical and legal requirements:

• 8+ years of FPGA/ASIC design and verification experience (see Experience Level).
• Proficient writing RTL in Verilog, SystemVerilog, or VHDL (SystemVerilog preferred).
• Strong understanding of CDC, constraint definition, static timing analysis (STA), and timing closure.
• Experience with FPGA toolchains (e.g., Xilinx Vivado, Intel Quartus, Lattice Diamond/Radiant, Microchip Libero).
• Experience with simulators such as ModelSim or QuestaSim.
• Experience writing testbenches and verification using UVM/OVM, SystemVerilog assertions, and coverage analysis.
• Proven ability to debug simulation and hardware failures to root cause.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Nice-to-have:

• 10+ years FPGA/ASIC development experience.
• Scripting experience (Python, Tcl, Perl) and familiarity with revision control systems (Git/SVN).
• Experience with on-chip bus protocols (AMBA/AXI/AHB/APB) and interfaces (IEEE 802.3, XAUI, PCIe, JESD204, I2C, SPI).
• Working knowledge of NPR 7150.2, DO-254, or other safety-critical standards.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's or Master’s degree in computer engineering, electrical engineering, computer science, mathematics, physics, aerospace, or a related field.

About the Company

Company: Blue Origin

Headquarters: Kent, Washington, United States

Blue Origin is an American aerospace company developing technologies for spaceflight, including reusable launch vehicles, orbital and suborbital systems, and space infrastructure for commercial and government customers.