Thermal Engineer, Hypersonic Air Vehicles

Job description

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years. About the Team The Thermal Engineering team's work is essential to support our rapid innovation cycle and maintain the performance and reliability of advanced defense technologies. Thermal Engineers own the full development life cycle from conceptual design through ground testing and flight test analysis, ensuring high-performance, resilient systems that meet the demands of complex, contested environments. About the Job We are looking for Thermal Engineers to join our Hypersonic Air Vehicles team in Costa Mesa, CA. In this role, you will support the thermal design and analysis of unmanned air vehicles operating in demanding high-speed flight environments. This role is ideal for someone early to mid-career with strong heat transfer and fluid dynamics fundamentals who wants to grow into full ownership of thermal design problems on hypersonic vehicle programs. What You'll Do • Support thermal design and analysis of unmanned air vehicles at conceptual, preliminary, and detailed design maturities • Perform thermal analysis of flight vehicles using CFD, FEA, and engineering methods • Support material response modeling under combined thermal and mechanical loads • Conduct transient thermal analysis for time-varying mission profiles • Support ground test planning, execution, and analysis in specialized thermal test facilities • Use first principles and MATLAB/Python models to inform design decisions • Collaborate with aerodynamics, structures, electrical, and systems engineers on integrated solutions • Present thermal analysis results at internal design reviews • Prepare formal documentation (specifications, test procedures, technical reports) Required Qualifications • MS or higher degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Applied Physics with focus on heat transfer and fluid dynamics • In-depth understanding of heat transfer, fluid dynamics, and high-temperature environments • Coursework, research, or industry experience in thermal analysis for aerospace or high-performance hardware systems • Experience with thermal analysis using CFD (STAR-CCM+, ANSYS Fluent) and/or FEA thermal solvers through coursework, research, or industry work • Programming experience in MATLAB, Python, or similar • Passion for defending the United States and he