Senior Thermal Engineer

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

Anduril’s Tactical Recon & Strike (TRS) is a division with two missions: 1) build highly capable autonomous drones, and 2) build solid rocket motors at scale. We transform products like Ghost, Anvil, Bolt, and Altius from early concepts into fully operational capabilities by partnering closely with specialist engineering, operations, and production teams. Through our Anduril Rocket Motor Systems (RMS) team, we design and manufacture solid rocket motors using advanced materials, proprietary formulations, and high-volume production methods—delivering safe, reliable propulsion systems that support a wide range of mission requirements. TRS hires software engineers & hardware engineers, who are excited to build across a diverse and powerful portfolio—from autonomous aerial systems to high-performance solid rocket motors. Our teams contribute to highly capable autonomous robotics systems and propulsion products that operate reliably in the most demanding mission environment.

ABOUT THE JOB

Anduril’s Rocket Motor Systems group is seeking a Senior Thermal Engineer to join our team. The Rocket Motor Systems group designs, develops, and manufactures next-generation solid rocket motors for defense and space applications at Anduril. As a Thermal Engineer you will conduct detailed thermal analysis of solid rocket motor components. The right person for this role has a strong understanding of thermal analysis principles, with expertise in some of the tools common in industry.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Perform detailed thermal analysis of solid rocket motor components.
• Size internal insulation, external thermal protection systems, and structural insulators.
• Validate models with test data; develop predictive ablation and erosion models.
• Define sub-scale tests for characterizing material properties of insulators and ablators.
• Evaluate and recommend ablative materials and thermal protection system solutions for applications in solid rocket motors
• Create reports and presentations documenting analysis and other supporting work.
• Present to peers and customers in design reviews.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• A bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or similar.
• 8+ years of relevant professional experience.
• Working knowledge of fundamental heat transfer, thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics first principles.
• Prior experience operating CAD software and/or FEA software.
• Strong communication skills.
• Ability to travel to other Anduril sites, customer sites, or supplier sites as business demand dictates. Anticipated 10-25% travel.
• Ability to obtain and hold a U.S. Secret Security Clearance.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Advanced degree (master’s or doctorate) in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or similar with a focus on ablation modeling, computational combustion, or reacting flows.
• Experience with Abaqus FEA software.
• Expertise in engineering tool development in Microsoft Excel, MATLAB, and/or Python.
• Expertise with thermochemical ablation and material response analysis, with an emphasis on ablation in solid rocket motors and/or reentry systems.
• Expertise with ablation modeling tools, such as Hero, CHAR, PATO or similar, and surface chemistry tools, such as ACE or Mutation++

US Salary Range

$126,000—$167,000 USD

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including: 

Healthcare Benefits 

• US Roles: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans at little to no cost to you. 
• UK & AUS Roles: We cover full cost of medical insurance premiums for you and your dependents. 
• IE Roles: We offer an annual contribution toward your private health insurance for you and your dependents.

 

Additional Benefits 

• Income Protection: Anduril covers life and disability insurance for all employees. 
• Generous time off: Highly competitive PTO plans with a holiday hiatus in December. Caregiver & Wellness Leave is available to care for family members, bond with a new baby, or address your own medical needs. 
• Family Planning & Parenting Support: Coverage for fertility treatments (e.g., IVF, preservation), adoption, and gestational carriers, along with resources to support you and your partner from planning to parenting. 
• Mental Health Resources: Access free mental health resources 24/7, including therapy and life coaching. Additional work-life services, such as legal and financial support, are also available. 
• Professional Development: Annual reimbursement for professional development 
• Commuter Benefits: Company-funded commuter benefits based on your region. 
• Relocation Assistance: Available depending on role eligibility.

 

Retirement Savings Plan 

• US Roles: Traditional 401(k), Roth, and after-tax (mega backdoor Roth) options. 
• UK & IE Roles: Pension plan with employer match. 
• AUS Roles: Superannuation plan.

 

The recruiter assigned to this role can share more information about the specific compensation and benefit details associated with this role during the hiring process. 

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• No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.

• Please always verify communications:

  • Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address.
  • Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to contact@anduril.com.

   

• Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.

• What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to contact@anduril.com. Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.

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