Relativity Space
Lead Engineer, Turbomachinery Core Technology
At Relativity Space, we have two audacious goals: to build the next great commercial launch company with Terran R and to become America's leading force in additive manufacturing innovation. Both contribute to our long-term vision of creating humanity’s industrial base on Mars, paving the way for interplanetary life to expand the possibilities of the human experience. This journey begins right here on Earth – where we design, build, and fly rockets to deliver customer payloads to orbit. Terran R, our medium-to-heavy lift reusable rocket, fulfills the growing demand for launch capacity, thanks to our iterative approach that accelerates design, testing, and development while minimizing costs. While our groundbreaking research and development in 3D printing pushes the boundaries of large-scale additive manufacturing.
Your journey with us is more than just a job – it’s an opportunity to shape the future of aerospace technology, additive manufacturing, and the human experience alongside a community of passionate, creative individuals. Join us on this extraordinary journey, as we work together to transform our vision into reality.
About the Team:
The propulsion team at Relativity is responsible for the successful development of the engines that will power the Terran R vehicle. We own their design from concept through to launch and reuse. Our team partners heavily with manufacturing, test, launch, and integration teams, striving to develop our engines in record time and to support Terran R's first launch in 2026. As part of this team, you will help build, test, and iterate on the full product lifecycle of our Aeon-R engine systems, seeing them mature and eventually bring Terran R into space.
About the Role:
As a Turbomachinery Engineering Lead, you will architect and own how we design, analyze, and qualify our turbopumps for flight. You will lead a team that is responsible for the design and analysis of the aerodynamic and hydrodynamic aspects of Relativity’s turbomachinery products. Your team will also oversee development, qualification, and acceptance testing, ultimately shaping how the turbomachinery is designed, operated, and evaluated. This role will require managing a small team, requiring strong mentorship, project management, establishing priorities, communicating with leadership, providing technical guidance, and recruiting. Close collaboration with stakeholders within Propulsion Engineering (Combustion Devices, Engine Systems, and Components) and external to Propulsion Engineering (Stage, Test Stand, and Manufacturing) is essential. To be successful in this role, you should be someone who thrives in ambiguity and knows how to lead (and guide) projects to completion.
About You:
- Bachelor’s degree in a science, engineering, technology, or mathematics field
- Experience with turbomachinery design and analysis methodologies
- Experience in mentoring, with demonstrated leadership skills
- Experience with Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and associated commercial tools
- Experience with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and associated commercial tools.
- Experience designing and analyzing turbomachinery components including inducers, impellers, turbines, diffusers, bearings and seals, etc.
- Experience applying fluid, thermal, structural, and mechanical design fundamentals
- Experience driving to deliver on ambitious schedules
Nice to haves but not required:
- Masters or doctorate degree in a relevant technical field
- Experience leading teams
- Experience developing turbopumps for liquid propulsion rocket engines
- Experience working in a flight development program.
- Experience with computer aided design (CAD) software
At Relativity Space, we are committed to transparency and fairness in our compensation practices. Actual compensation will be determined based on experience, qualifications, and other job-related factors.
Compensation is only one part of our total rewards package. Relativity Space offers competitive salary and equity, a generous PTO and sick leave policy, parental leave, an annual learning and development stipend, and more! To see some of the benefits & perks we offer, please visit here.
Hiring Range:
$146,000—$187,000 USD
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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