Senior Aerothermal Engineer

Turning Space into a Transportation Layer for Earth Who We Are: Inversion builds advanced reentry systems to deliver next-generation capabilities from space. Our mission is to make Earth radically more accessible by turning Low-Earth Orbit into an on-demand logistics domain. We see space not as a destination, but as a platform — one that unlocks unprecedented speed and global reach. Our spacecraft are designed to deliver payloads anywhere on Earth in under an hour, operating through extreme reentry conditions and landing with high precision. These systems open the door to new ways of testing, delivering, and operating at hypersonic speeds. Inherently dual-use, our technology is built to meet urgent national security needs while laying the groundwork for future commercial applications. Backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, and working with partners such as the U.S. Space Force and NASA, Inversion is pushing the boundaries of what's possible in space-based defense and logistics. What You'll Do: Every surface of Inversion's reentry vehicles is designed against the aerothermal environment it must survive — and that environment must be known before it can be designed against. As the Senior Aerothermal Environments Engineer, you will develop and database the aerothermal environment around our reentry vehicles, combining high-fidelity CFD, engineering-level methods, and test data into database products that drive vehicle design. In this role, you will: Develop and maintain aerothermal environment databases spanning the full flight envelope of Inversion's reentry vehicles Run high-enthalpy CFD solutions at conditions anchoring the database, including flows in thermal-chemical non-equilibrium Apply handbook and engineering-level heating estimation methods to efficiently populate the trajectory and attitude space between high-fidelity anchor points Fuse heating estimates from data sources of varying fidelity — CFD, engineering methods, ground test, and flight data — into coherent database products with defined uncertainties and margins Deliver environments that directly drive TPS sizing, structural design, and trajectory constraints, and support downstream users in applying them correctly Build and mature the tooling, automation, and data infrastructure behind database generation and delivery Required Qualifications: Bachelor's degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent experience Typically, 5+ years of experience in hypersonic, supersonic, reentry, or rocketry aerothermodynamic analysis Experience running high-enthalpy flow solvers (US3D, DPLR, LAURA, Loci-CHEM, or similar) Experience with handbook and engineering-level heating estimation methods (e.g., Fay-Riddell, Tauber, MINIVER-class tools, or similar correlations) Strong fundamentals in hypersonic aerodynamics, boundary layer physics, and convective and radiative heat transfer Proficiency in programming languages like Python, Fortran, C++, or MATLAB for analysis tooling and automation Proven ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment, including prototyping and rapid iteration of new products This position is on-site at Inversion HQ in Playa Vista, CA. Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance. Desired Qualifications: Master's or PhD in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering, or an equivalent field Experience assembling heating estimates from data sources of varying fidelity into an overall database product used to drive vehicle design Experience with uncertainty quantification and the definition of design margins for aerothermal environments Experience integrating ground and flight test data into aerothermal vehicle models Experience with boundary layer transition prediction and its treatment in heating environments Familiarity with Fidelity Pointwise, Link3D, or equivalent meshing software for generating high-quality meshes Experience w…