Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation & Control (GNC) Intern
AstroForge
Seal Beach, CA, USA
USD 30-30 / hour
Posted on Oct 30, 2025
Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation & Control (GNC) Intern
Seal Beach
GNC and Flight Software
In office
Full-time
About AstroForge
At AstroForge, our mission is to make space resources accessible on Earth. We mine asteroids to extract valuable minerals in space at a lower cost and smaller carbon footprint than current terrestrial mining methods. By joining the team at AF you’ll have the opportunity to work side by side with our amazing engineer and science teams. This position will provide you with valuable skills, experience, and mentorship necessary to become a leading professional in your field. We offer a unique opportunity to join an exciting team looking to expand humanity’s capabilities in space.
Job Description
As a GNC intern, you will be responsible for developing, implementing, and testing the algorithms that will power the world’s first asteroid mining vehicles. From spacecraft attitude determination & control, to on-board perception, to vehicle autonomy, you will alongside our Guidance, Navigation, and Control engineers as we tackle a wide array of challenges for both on-going and upcoming missions.
Basic Qualifications
- Currently pursuing a degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, or a related STEM field.
- Enrollment in an accredited college or university, with a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
- Must be a rising senior.
- Must not be otherwise employed for the duration of the internship.
- Must be 18 years or older.
- Proof of US Citizenship or Permanent Residency.
Responsibilities
- Develop, implement, and tune algorithms for spacecraft guidance, navigation & control
- Simulate and analyze vehicle dynamics under various mission scenarios.
- Assist with integrating sensor data (IMUs, GPS, cameras) for perception and state estimation.
- Work with hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) environments and testbeds to validate real-time performance.
- Collaborate with systems, software, and avionics engineers to test and deploy GNC solutions.
- Contribute to tools and scripts that support verification and debugging of flight software.
Required Skills & Qualifications
- Proficiency in one or more programming languages: Python, C, C++, or Rust.
- Strong foundation in dynamics, calculus, and linear algebra.
- Experience with robotics concepts such as control systems, perception, or state estimation.
Preferred Skills
- Experience testing / debugging software in hardware-in-the-loop environments.
- Involvement in aerospace projects, robotics teams, or student competitions is a plus but not required.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Ability to demonstrate critical thinking skills.
Location: Onsite in Seal Beach
Pay Rate: $30.00 per hour
Duration: 10 weeks
ITAR Requirements
To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S.,protected individual as defined by ITAR (22 CFR §120.15) or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
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Req ID: R79
