Intern Thruster Development

Description

We are seeking a highly motivated engineering intern to support our thruster development team in the early-stage development, prototyping, and testing of new thruster products. The intern will contribute to two distinct projects:

1. Early-Stage Development – This project focuses on the initial development cycle of new thruster concepts. The intern will assist in conducting trade studies, comparing different propulsion concepts, and performing a literature review on various propellants.


2. Thruster Testing & Prototyping – This project involves working on a thruster product that is already further in its development cycle. The intern will support the development team in generating test plans for different prototype configurations and assisting in test campaign execution.

Responsibilities

·         Conduct a literature review on different propellants options for liquid bi-propellant rocket motors.

·         Perform trade studies comparing different propellant combinations and propulsion concepts.

·         Create conceptual designs for thrusters using various propellants.

·         Generate test plans for thruster testing.

·         Prepare thrusters and test setups for hot-fire testing.

·         Execute hot-fire tests on different thruster designs and analyze the results.

·         Upgrade and modify existing hot-fire test setups as required.

·         Document findings and results in a technical report.

Qualifications

·         Currently enrolled in a BSc or MSc program (or equivalent) in Aerospace Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering, or a related field.

·         Available for a full-time internship of at least four months.

·         Demonstrated hands-on engineering experience.

·         Solid theoretical knowledge of rocket engine development and ideal rocket theory at the university level.

·         Experience in technical report writing.

·         Strong interest in aerospace technology, particularly propulsion systems.

·         Excellent organizational and time-management skills.

·         Ability to work effectively both independently and in a team.

·         Strong English communication skills, both written and verbal.

·         Proficiency in programming, preferably MATLAB or Python.

Desired Experience

·         Practical, hands-on experience with rocket engine development (e.g. through student projects).

·         Familiarity with high-pressure gases, specifically nitrous oxide.

About Dawn Aerospace

Dawn Aerospace is a space transportation company with a purpose.
Our mission is to enable the next generation of space users by providing more sustainable and scalable ways to access and move around in space. We believe this access, in the form of a transportation network, will fundamentally change what’s possible from space. We currently focus on two areas of space transportation:

- In-space propulsion
We're a leading supplier of turnkey green propulsion systems for various classes of satellites. Our system utilise safe, accessible propellants and we have over 111 of these propulsion units on 16 operational satellites already. A further 200 units are in production.

- Space launch
Our Mk-II Aurora spaceplane demonstrator has completed 50 successful flights and we recently completed campaigns utilising our in-house rocket engine. Mk-II is unique in that it combines the performance of a rocket and the rapid reusability and economic model of an aircraft.

Our international teams are distributed across four locations: the Netherlands, France, New Zealand, and the USA.

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Important!

If you think you have what it takes but are unsure that you check every box, we still want to hear from you.

To all recruitment agencies: Dawn Aerospace does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our job’s alias, our employees, or any other company location. Dawn Aerospace will not be responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.