Thermal Engineer - Aerospace Systems

About the role

Analytical Mechanics Associates, Inc. (AMA) of Hampton VA is actively seeking thermal engineering candidates with experience in the design and analysis of thermal systems, with application to advanced high temperature aerospace applications that further NASA's mission of exploration, scientific discovery, and aeronautics innovation. This position will support the Research, Science and Engineering Services (RSES) contract onsite at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA.

The salary range for these positions is $70,000 to $160,000 per year, commensurate with education and experience.

US citizenship or Permanent Residency is required.

These roles are contingent upon being awarded the work.

Responsibilities

• Perform external flow analyses for determining aerothermodynamic loads on spacecraft, re-entry vehicles, high-speed aircraft, wind tunnel models, and other research platforms.
• Perform heat transfer analysis for propulsion systems, payloads, fluid transport, and actively cooled systems.
• Apply analysis results to the design of leading edges, thermal protection systems, heat mitigation strategies, and materials selection.
• Predict thermal instrumentation responses (thermocouples, heat flux sensors, and radiometers), integrate experimental results with models to characterize thermal environments.
• Identify, develop, and design, advanced high-temperature thermal protection materials, with use of additive manufacturing techniques.
• Generate assembly/integration and test procedures
• Prepare and present technical reports, engineering analyses, and project briefings to management and stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace or Materials Engineering, Thermal Sciences, Physics, or a relevant technical discipline.
• Demonstrated use of Pointwise, GridPro, HeldenMesh and Tecplot
• Strong understanding of thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, and thermal control principle
• Experience conducting thermal and power balance of propulsion systems, including heat exchanger design, propellant feed and pressurization systems, and thermal analysis
• Experience performing ground tests including those in conventional supersonic/hypersonic aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic wind tunnels, true-enthalpy propulsion blow-down and pulse-type test facilities.
• Experience with Python programming or similar.
• Familiarity with the Microsoft Office suite of tools
• US citizenship is required; US Persons permissible for some positions.

Desired Experience

• Experience in performing Structural, Thermal and Optical Performance (STOP) analysis Proficiency with thermal analysis and modeling tools such as Thermal Desktop, SINDA/FLUINT, ANSYS, MATLAB, or equivalent software.
• Experience with thermal vacuum testing, environmental testing, and model correlation activities.
• Knowledge of spacecraft thermal control systems, aircraft thermal systems, advanced materials, or hypersonic vehicle thermal environments.
• Experience in material characterization using Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA), Thermomechanical Analysis (TMA), Laser Flash (LFA), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)

Additional information

Analytical Mechanics Associates (AMA) is proud of our customer relationships, our diverse and dynamic work environment, and our employees' career satisfaction. AMA is a small business with a wide reach; headquartered in Hampton, VA, AMA has operations in Greenbelt, MD; Huntsville, AL; Dallas and Houston, TX; Denver, CO; Mountain View, CA; and Edwards Air Force Base, CA.

With over 60 years of experience, AMA specializes in aerospace engineering, science, analytics, information technology, and visualization solutions. AMA combines the best of engineering, science, and mathematics capabilities with the latest in information technologies, visualization, and multimedia to build creative solutions.

We offer competitive salaries and a substantial benefits package, including but not limited to paid personal and federally recognized holiday leave, salary deferrals into a 401(k)-matching plan with immediate vesting, tuition reimbursement, short/long term disability plans, and a variety of medical, dental, and vision insurance options.

AMA is committed to the professional growth of every employee, understanding that the successes of our employees drive our success. We provide a work environment that is engaging, collaborative, and supportive.

Analytical Mechanics Associates (AMA) is proud of our customer relationships, our diverse and dynamic work environment, and our employees' career satisfaction. AMA is a small business with a wide reach; headquartered in Hampton, VA, AMA has operations in Greenbelt, MD; Huntsville, AL; Dallas and Houston, TX; Denver, CO; Mountain View, CA; and Edwards Air Force Base, CA.

With over 60 years of experience, AMA specializes in aerospace engineering, science, analytics, information technology, and visualization solutions. AMA combines the best of engineering, science, and mathematics capabilities with the latest in information technologies, visualization, and multimedia to build creative solutions.

We offer competitive salaries and a substantial benefits package, including but not limited to paid personal and federally recognized holiday leave, salary deferrals into a 401(k)-matching plan with immediate vesting, tuition reimbursement, short/long term disability plans, and a variety of medical, dental, and vision insurance options.