Senior Core Software Engineer at Lunar Outpost
Golden
$105,000–$145,000
Jul 5, 2026
Golden
Jul 20, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A senior embedded/flight software engineering role focused on NASA's core Flight System (cFS), building and maintaining software for a lunar terrain vehicle intended to transport astronauts across the Moon's surface. Day-to-day work spans RTOS-based platform development, device drivers, hardware abstraction layers, command/telemetry handling, and hardware-in-the-loop testing. The role also carries a mentorship responsibility, guiding less experienced engineers on cFS practices and real-time safety standards.
Mid level · 3+ years · Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO · Bachelor's required · Full-time
Advertised as Senior, but the requirements read as Mid.
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Roughly 65 people in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO area plausibly meet what this posting asks for (software developers). range 15–120
Applicant volume Moderate — A normal amount of company. The rare requirements below are what will separate a shortlisted application from the rest.
Rare in this occupation — lead with these, and say what you built with them.
What the occupation pays Median $140,636 (middle half $126,359–$175,118).
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (7)
The posting is titled 'Senior Core Software Engineer' but gates on only 3+ years of experience in embedded/avionics software — well within the Mid band. The advertised seniority (Senior) and the actual requirements (Mid) diverge meaningfully.
Location is not explicitly stated in the posting; Lunar Outpost is headquartered in Golden/Denver, CO, so the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood CBSA is inferred. Verify the actual work location before posting.
The posting notes 'U.S. Person' as a requirement (not merely preferred), which typically implies export-control compliance (ITAR/EAR) rather than a formal security clearance — no clearance gate is stated.
NASA cFS is listed under Required Qualifications as 'flight software frameworks such as NASA cFS or similar architectures' — the 'or similar' qualifier means the specific framework is interchangeable, but the flight software framework capability itself is a hard gate.
Hardware-in-the-loop testing appears in both the responsibilities section and the Preferred Qualifications ('simulation tools or hardware-in-the-loop testing'); it is treated as required given its presence in the core responsibilities and the Required Qualifications section's integration/testing language.
Fault-tolerant/safety-critical software design, GNC software integration, crewed vehicle avionics, and mentoring junior engineers all appear only under Preferred Qualifications.
Ignored 1 non-technology phrase(s) as skills (responsibilities/concepts, not named tools): hardware-in-the-loop testing.
Read the full posting
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