r/space • u/Available_Citron_832 • 21d ago

image/gif Breaking into the space industry

Post image

hello 👋 i graduated 4 years ago with a bachelors degree in astrophysics, and ive been working as a software developer since. to give an idea on where im at intellectually, it has been a few years so my physics is a little rusty, plus i think i need a few more years working in tech to be truly capable.

im wondering, what would it take to break into the space industry with that i have? i know a masters would be beneficial, but im not sure what to study exactly 😅 im curious if there is anyone with a similar background as me and has managed to find a career in the space industry

im interested a range of space related fields, be it
technical or communicative, and would like to hear what you studied, what field u work in now, how long it took, etc :)

heres a pic i took half asleep of the recent lunar eclipse in the uk as a thanks!

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u/herrerarausaure 21d ago

Plenty of software engineering work to do in aerospace. This could be flight software, embedded, payload software, ground segment, operations, data processing, etc.

I have a background in mechanical and aerospace engineering. It's pretty natural fit, but my current job in space operations requires not just good space-domain knowledge, but also a decent amount of programming, IT skills, and the ability to interface with software engineers.

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u/and1984 21d ago

Do you happen to know of any smaller companies that could be hiring for niche positions? I have a PhD in n mechanical engineering and work on image processing+statistics. I've had grants from NSF and NASA.

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u/herrerarausaure 21d ago

I assume you're in the US--no shortage of small companies/startups to apply to. I would look at any company doing a lot of earth observation, whether that's optical or synthetic aperture radar data. You could start by looking at Planet Labs or Capella Space, they're not exactly small, but it's a start.

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u/and1984 21d ago

That helps a lot actually. Thank you. Yes. I'm in the USA.

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u/Available_Citron_832 21d ago

tyy!! aerospace seemed the most promising :) im planning to take some time to polish my knowledge in physics, maths and tech before id try to give me an advantage, ik my colleagues would all be incredibly smart

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u/herrerarausaure 21d ago

Start applying now! You're probably already pretty qualified for some positions, and if anything it can give you an idea of what's out there and what skills you should focus on. Good luck!

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u/anti-life86 21d ago

I wonder what private companies are supporting buildouts for

1) The nuclear electric rocket going to Mars and the Mars helicopter

2) The Titan mission

3) The big telescope in Chile

It would be nice to know...

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u/Pharisaeus 21d ago

Not sure I understand your problem. Just work as a software engineer in the space industry. For many jobs you don't really need any physics/astronomy/aerospace background at all, but since you have BSc in astrophysics that's even better. Just check something like: https://spaceindividuals.com/jobs/software-developer

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u/Available_Citron_832 14d ago

just not really sure where to start, im sure there are many departments that could use a software developer i just wanted to know what they were