Senior/Principal R&D Computer Scientist - Space Domain Awareness, Colorado Springs, CO, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation's premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov

*These benefits vary by job classification.

You will provide software development, build engineering, cyber engineering, and other technology capabilities for a space domain awareness program. You will work closely with a team that includes onsite collaborators at the sponsors location in Colorado Springs and peers based out of our main offices in Albuquerque, NM. Your contributions will directly support national security by delivering high-quality software solutions for critical space domain awareness missions.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a frontline team tackling significant technical challenges in the space domain awareness field. Working onsite with the sponsor will give you firsthand insight and impact on this important work. You will have opportunities to grow your technical expertise, collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, and contribute to innovative solutions that advance Sandias mission.

On any given day you will be expected to perform the following:

• Work with an Agile team of developers to develop and deliver high test readiness level (TRL) software to the customer using object-oriented design and continuous integration/delivery methods.
• Collaborate with developers, technical leads, and colleagues across organizations to collect requirements, design solutions, and deliver extensible software applications.
• Work on image processing and data-centric research and development projects.
• Deliver software builds to other sites, including installation and testing.
• Use debugging tools, static analysis tools, test harnesses, and other capabilities to troubleshoot and fix complex software applications and libraries.
• Engage with diverse specialists in areas such as image processing, analytics, modeling and simulation, service-oriented architectures, data management, and visualization.

This position is based in Colorado Springs, CO, and requires five days onsite each week. Some travel is expected.

$108,600 - $216,600

*Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.

• A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline and five (5) years of directly relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.
• Ability to obtain and maintain DOE Q and SCI clearance which may require a polygraph test.

The ideal R&D S&E, Computer Science candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:

• Graduate degree in Computer Science or a highly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, thesis, or dissertation).
• Demonstrated software development skills and familiarity with modern software development practices and tools (e.g., Agile).
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary teams, and a passion to improve and expand technical skills.

Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience:

• Object-oriented software development in Java, C++, and/or Python.
• Continuous Improvement/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) experience using automated build processes, Docker/Podman containers, and other containerization software.
• Unix/Linux, RedHat Linux, Scripting in Python, Bash and JavaScript.
• Information Assurance software installation, test, and ensuring software operates as needed.
• Ability to balance and complete multiple task and priorities.

Our team (6300) designs and develops sophisticated data processing systems and analytical applications that enable some of our nation's most compelling nonproliferation and national security missions. Our mission is to design, engineer, build, deploy and improve critical systems that transform data into decisions. Our systems support a range of applications including remote and in-situ sensing systems; satellite communications and control; distributed computing and analysis; realtime data collection, processing, exploitation, and dissemination; and mission engineering and analysis. Our team's deep domain and technical experience, coupled with an operational mindset builds distinct and extraordinary capabilities for our nation and the people who put their lives on the line to protect it.

REAPER is a Sandia project that maintains and expands the OPAL code base for different sensors. OPAL is an image processing architecture tool used to support Electro-Optical space and ground systems across the Space Domain Awareness (SDA) portfolio. Bifrost uses OPAL inside the DoD's RedLAN network to support the 1SOPS mission for tactical and timely space situational awareness by aggregating, fusing, and disseminating SDA data from traditional and non-traditional sensors and enabling analysts through metrics, reporting, and graphing.

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of seven (7) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance and SCI access, both of which require US citizenship. SCI access may also require a polygraph examination. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain these levels of access may be impacted.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by the DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.