Senior Software Engineer (Orbit Control team)

ICEYE is a Finnish space technology company that owns and operates the world's largest commercial synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite constellation. The company delivers continuous, all-weather, day-and-night Earth observation capabilities, enabling persistent monitoring and rapid detection of changes at any location on the planet. Its core offerings span SAR data products, mission systems for sovereign governments, defense and intelligence solutions, and natural catastrophe monitoring for the insurance, banking, and public sectors. ICEYE plays a significant role in climate resilience and disaster response by providing near real-time, observed data on natural catastrophes such as floods, wildfires, and hurricanes. Unlike traditional modelling approaches, ICEYE delivers actual satellite-derived flood extents and depths, empowering governments, insurers, and utilities to respond faster and more accurately to climate-driven disasters. This capability supports community resilience, more precise insurance claims processing, and informed policy decisions in the face of increasing climate risk. What distinguishes ICEYE is its combination of the largest SAR constellation globally, sub-meter (25 cm) resolution imagery, and an end-to-end operational intelligence infrastructure that includes deployable ground units capable of compressing collection-to-dissemination timelines to minutes. Founded with a mission to make Earth observation data continuously available and actionable, ICEYE serves defense, intelligence, government, and commercial clients worldwide, positioning itself as a critical enabler of both national security and climate adaptation efforts.

Role highlights:

• Senior Software Engineer

• Location: Espoo

• Department: Engineering

• Reports to: Engineering Lead, Orbit Control

• Employment type: Permanent

• Workplace model: Office / Hybrid

• Employment is subject to applicable security screening (incl. SUPO)

Why this role matters:

As a Senior Software Engineer, you’ll help keep ICEYE’s world-leading SAR satellite constellation operating safely and reliably. Working in the AOCS domain, you will take technical ownership of Orbit Control software that helps ensure our satellites are exactly where they need to be to fulfil their mission. Your work will directly affect the performance, reliability, and quality of the SAR data ICEYE delivers to customers.

Who We Are

ICEYE delivers space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities to governments and allied nations. This includes sovereign and turnkey ISR missions leveraging ICEYE’s world-leading synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite technology, as well as access to data from the world’s largest SAR satellite constellation. These capabilities enable partners to detect and respond to critical changes anywhere on Earth with unprecedented speed and accuracy, day or night and in any weather, supported by ultra high-resolution imagery and high-frequency revisits.

As a trusted partner for defense, intelligence, security, and maritime domain awareness, ICEYE’s near real-time data creates a tactical advantage for mission-critical operations. Designed for dual use, the platform also serves civil protection and commercial users for natural-catastrophe intelligence, insurance, maritime monitoring including oil-spill detection, and finance, contributing to global security and community resilience.

ICEYE is headquartered in Finland and operates globally across Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. We have more than 900 employees, united by a shared vision: improving life on Earth by becoming the global source of truth in Earth Observation.

Your day-to-day responsibilities

• Take technical ownership of the Orbit Control codebase, primarily written in Python, ensuring it is robust, maintainable, and operationally reliable

• Design, implement, test, deploy, and maintain ground segment software to control the orbits of our satellites

• Build and maintain verification and validation procedures for Orbit Control software in close collaboration with operations teams

• Debug system anomalies systematically and identify root causes to prevent recurrence

• Improve telemetry data analysis, processing, visualization, logging, monitoring, and alerting capabilities

• Collaborate with orbital mechanics experts, mission teams, Staff Engineers, and Engineering Leads to translate operational needs into high-quality software solutions

• Define and promote strong software engineering practices, including automated testing, CI/CD, and operational monitoring

• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to the technical direction of the team

What we’re looking for

Must haves:

• Proven experience across the full software lifecycle, including designing, building, testing, deploying, and maintaining production software

• Strong experience with operationally critical or high-reliability software systems

• Expertise in systematic root-cause analysis, diagnostics, monitoring, and debugging of distributed systems

• Ability to evaluate technical options rigorously and guide teams toward well-considered engineering decisions

• Strong understanding of software engineering practices such as automated testing, CI/CD, observability, and operational monitoring

• Ability to lead complex technical initiatives, mentor engineers, and influence technical direction

• Strong collaboration and communication skills in cross-functional technical environments

Nice to haves:

• Experience with Kubernetes or similar orchestration systems

• Experience working with spacecraft operations, orbital mechanics, AOCS, or mission-critical aerospace systems

• Experience building tools for telemetry analysis, visualization, logging, alerting, or operational insight

Application Process

• Talent Acquisition screening (remote)

• Hiring Manager interview (remote)

• Take-home task and technical interview (remote)

• On-site Systems Design Workshop

• On-site Behavioural Interview

Working at ICEYE

At ICEYE, you’ll join a diverse and highly engaged team united by the ambition to make the impossible possible. As a global scale-up, we combine speed and ambition with the opportunity to take real ownership from day one. Your growth, wellbeing, and success are a priority, with continuous professional development, training opportunities, and a culture where collaboration is how we win.

How We Work (Our Values)

Make the impossible possible: We set ambitious goals and stay calm under pressure. We bring grit, optimism, and ownership when things get hard, and we keep moving until we find a way.

• Be curious: Go deep, ask questions, listen carefully, and think critically. Understand the why behind decisions.

• See the big picture: Stay close to what’s happening across the company so you can make better decisions. Consider how your work affects others.

• Drive effective teamwork: Create psychological safety, invite different perspectives, and build inclusive teams. There are no bad questions.

• Act as one team: We win together. We match tasks to the right owner and stay agile as priorities shift.

• Have fun: What we do matters and it should be enjoyable. Celebrate progress, take pride in results, and share the wins.

Benefits

Our benefits are designed to support your health and wellbeing, at work and beyond. We keep improving them based on employee feedback, and offerings vary by location. Talent Acquisition will confirm what applies for this role and location during the process.

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

We want ICEYE to be a place where people can be themselves and do great work. Different backgrounds and perspectives make us stronger, which is why we work to create an environment where people feel included, respected, and able to speak up. Whatever your background, we want you to bring your authentic self to the table.

We’re committed to fair, inclusive hiring and equal opportunity. Everyone is welcome to apply. If you need any adjustments or support during the recruitment process, tell us and we will do our best to help.

Apply now to start your ICEYE journey and help us continue to make the impossible possible together. Read more about ICEYE and working with us at iceye.com.