Ground Station Engineer

Welcome to Planet. We believe in using space to help life on Earth.

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. This constellation delivers an unprecedented dataset of empirical information via a revolutionary cloud-based platform to authoritative figures in commercial, environmental, and humanitarian sectors. We are both a space company and data company all rolled into one.

Customers and users across the globe use Planet's data to develop new technologies, drive revenue, power research, and solve our world’s toughest obstacles.

As we control every component of hardware design, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering, our office is a truly inspiring mix of experts from a variety of domains.

We have a people-centric approach toward culture and community and we strive to iterate in a way that puts our team members first and prepares our company for growth. Join Planet and be a part of our mission to change the way people see the world.

Planet is a global company with employees working remotely world wide and joining us from offices in San Francisco, Washington DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and The Netherlands.

About the Role:

As a Ground Station Engineer at Planet you will be a member of the Planet Ground Stations Operations Team focused on the delivery and operational excellence of a geographically diverse Ground Station network. The network is composed of a mix of physical antennas, network and compute resources, cloud infrastructure and industrial controllers working in unison to autonomously track and communicate with Planet’s multiple satellite constellations.

Planet’s satellites generate a substantial dataset and moving that data from our spacecraft across the Ground Station network daily poses ever changing design goals for our Operations Team. The Ground Station team works closely with Spacecraft Operators and Mission Control engineers to autonomously control the spacecraft and bring the data back to Earth.

As a Ground Station Engineer overseeing the installation of complex systems that are critical to Planet’s ongoing operations, you will be required to regularly exercise discretion, independent judgment, and will be expected to make decisions independent of oversight as needed.

An essential element of this position requires the ability to climb, and lift/push/pull equipment up to 50 pounds. A drivers license and clean driving record will be required as well as the ability to operate vehicles in foreign countries.

This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to work from our Berlin office 3 days per week.

Impact You’ll Own:

• Collaborate with the Logistics and Service Delivery Managers to facilitate the deployment of hardware and essential materials to emerging ground station locations.
• Direct and manage all on-site implementation and construction tasks.
• Partner with internal Finance units to ensure rigorous asset tracking and accounting for deployed infrastructure.
• Provide consistent and detailed progress updates regarding the technical installation lifecycle.

What You Bring:

• 4+ years of experience in antenna system installation or maintenance.
• Bachelor’s degree or higher in RF Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or similar specialized technical field
• Experience in organizational management and high-volume task prioritization.
• Familiarity with RF test equipment such as spectrum and network analyzers.
• Willingness to travel up to 75% of the time.
• Ability to work with little or no supervision. Discretion to make independent decisions.

What Makes You Stand Out:

• Advanced understanding of RF communication and satellite communication protocols.
• 2+ years experience with RF electronics and communication systems including: RF front-end equipment, back-end equipment, communication hardware, and link budgets.
• Antenna system calibration, diagnostics and monitoring experience.
• 2+ years experience with telemetry, tracking and control systems.
• 2-4 years project management and logistics experience.
• Radar and/or comms experience.
• Experience with Linux or UNIX servers.

Application Deadline:

11:45p / 23:45 CET on the date stated below. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. This posting may be removed earlier than projected if a suitable pool of applications has been received. For this reason, we recommend applying as soon as you are able to.

Export Control Requirements:

Planet Labs Germany GmbH is authorized to receive U.S. export-controlled information at Planet under an export license issued by the Bureau of Industry and Security. This position requires access to U.S. and German/EU export-controlled information, and as such, employment (or hiring of a contractor) is contingent upon the candidate’s ability to access all applicable export-controlled information without additional export licensing being required by German, EU, or U.S. …