Software Engineer, Missions Software

About Planet

Welcome to Planet, where space is harnessed to help life on Earth. Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites, delivering an unprecedented dataset via a revolutionary cloud-based platform. This data empowers commercial, environmental, and humanitarian sectors globally, enabling new technologies, driving revenue, powering research, and solving critical world obstacles.

As a company that controls hardware design, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering, Planet fosters an inspiring mix of experts from diverse domains. We prioritize a people-centric culture, iterating to put team members first and prepare for growth. Join Planet and be a part of a mission to change how the world is seen.

Planet is a global company with remote employees worldwide, and offices in San Francisco, Washington DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and The Netherlands.

About The Role: Software Engineer, Missions Software

Planet’s Mission Control is a crucial web-based application enabling spacecraft operators and analysts to monitor, control, and study our expanding satellite fleet. It integrates with distributed microservices for spacecraft scheduling, tasking, telemetry processing, and other operational needs, automating much of the day-to-day satellite operations.

As a Software Engineer, Missions Software, you will be an integral part of the team responsible for building, maintaining, and operating these essential tools. Your mission will be to provide a seamless interface for Planet's spacecraft operators, analysts, and engineers to interact effortlessly with our space assets. You will contribute to minimizing operational burden and automating all aspects of satellite operations, engaging with end-users to iteratively enhance these systems and solve a broad array of engineering problems in a dynamic environment.

This is a full-time, remote position based in the United States or Canada. For those located near an office, a hybrid work arrangement (3 days per week in-office) is an option.

Impact You'll Own

• Maintain and augment automation and services critical to Planet’s satellite operations.
• Specify and implement new HTTP APIs and enhance existing ones.
• Evaluate and select appropriate software technologies.
• Design and deploy critical infrastructure.
• Contribute to a collaborative team that values open communication, self-learning, and initiative.
• Work closely with cross-functional teams including Satellite and Ground Operations, Pipeline, and Product teams to ensure constellation needs are met.

What You Bring

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, or similar field.
• 2+ years of relevant work experience.
• Proficiency in Python programming.
• Experience with API design.
• Strong attention to quality, including automated testing, code review, and documentation.
• Experience with relational database technologies (e.g., Postgres, MySQL).
• Familiarity with peer-reviewed code, continuous integration/deployment (CI/CD) workflows, and tools like GitLab CI and Docker.
• Proficient Linux skills.
• Ability to be a self-starter and solve problems in a dynamic environment.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills with cross-functional teams.

What Makes You Stand Out

• Experience building services leveraging cloud-based infrastructure and tooling (e.g., AWS, GCP).
• Experience maintaining infrastructure with Ansible, Kubernetes, Terraform, or similar tools.
• Experience with monitoring tools like Datadog, Sentry, or equivalent.
• Prior experience working in microservice environments.
• Knowledge of aerospace concepts.

Benefits While Working At Planet

Planet offers a comprehensive benefits package, dependent on employment type and geographical location. Offerings include:

• Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans.
• Health Savings Account (HSA) with company contribution.
• Generous Paid Time Off, holidays, and company-wide days off.
• 16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave.
• Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
• Home Office and Monthly Phone/Internet Reimbursement.
• Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning.
• Equity opportunities.
• Commuter Benefits (if local to an office).
• Volunteering Paid Time Off.

Compensation

The US base salary ranges for this full-time position are:

• New York City + California: $107,500—$134,300 USD
• San Francisco: $115,800—$142,700 USD
• US National: $100,300—$125,400 USD

Final salary is determined by experience, skills, and location, and may include discretionary short-term and long-term incentives.

Key skills/competency

• Python Programming
• API Design
• Relational Databases
• CI/CD Workflows
• Linux OS
• Cloud Infrastructure (AWS/GCP)
• Microservices
• Automated Testing
• Satellite Operations
• Infrastructure Automation