Probabilistic Risk Assessment Analyst-Human Spaceflight

Accountabilities

• Develop and quantify risk models: Independently build, maintain, and refine probabilistic risk assessment models for human spaceflight and launch vehicle systems. Apply fault trees, event trees, cut-set analysis, and related methodologies to evaluate failure scenarios, common-cause failures, and key risk contributors.

• Assess crew and mission safety: Conduct integrated quantitative risk assessments covering spacecraft and launch vehicle systems, abort scenarios, ground and flight operations, and crew-related hazards. Evaluate Loss of Crew (LOC), Loss of Mission (LOM), and public safety risk metrics.

• Perform reliability and uncertainty analyses: Collect and analyze reliability and failure data, incorporate Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) where applicable, and quantify epistemic and aleatory uncertainties to strengthen risk-informed decision-making.

• Support regulatory compliance and launch licensing: Contribute to FAA Part 450 flight safety analyses and launch license applications, including expected casualty, probability of casualty, conditional expected casualty, probability-of-failure, debris, and other relevant risk assessments.

• Apply aerospace safety standards: Ensure analytical methods and deliverables align with applicable NASA probabilistic risk assessment guidance, human-rating requirements, commercial spaceflight regulations, and range safety practices.

• Collaborate with engineering stakeholders: Work closely with spacecraft, launch vehicle, systems engineering, safety, and reliability teams to gather design information, identify failure modes, validate assumptions, and incorporate operational data into risk models.

• Communicate technical findings: Present risk drivers, sensitivity analyses, model results, and recommendations to customers, engineering teams, management, and other stakeholders to support informed technical decisions.

• Prepare technical documentation: Develop clear, traceable PRA reports, model documentation, uncertainty assessments, and risk summaries. Integrate findings with hazard analyses, FMEA/FMECA, reliability studies, and certification activities.

• Manage multiple technical engagements: Lead or execute analytical activities across multiple customer programs, maintaining technical rigor, accountability, and consistent delivery with minimal day-to-day supervision.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, Statistics, or a related technical discipline. A master's degree is preferred.

• Professional experience: At least 6 years of experience in probabilistic risk assessment, quantitative reliability analysis, or system safety analysis within the aerospace industry. Experience with human spaceflight or launch vehicles is strongly preferred.

• PRA modeling expertise: Demonstrated experience conducting probabilistic risk assessments or equivalent quantitative risk analyses for complex aerospace systems, such as launch vehicles, spacecraft, or high-reliability aircraft.

• Technical tools and methodologies: Hands-on proficiency with fault trees, event trees, cut-set analysis, importance measures, and PRA software such as SAPHIRE, CAFTA, RiskSpectrum, or equivalent tools.

• Reliability and uncertainty analysis: Experience collecting, evaluating, and applying reliability and failure data, identifying risk drivers, conducting sensitivity studies, and quantifying uncertainty. Familiarity with Bayesian updating, Monte Carlo methods, or aerospace reliability databases is an advantage.

• Human spaceflight knowledge: Experience supporting crewed spaceflight programs or human-rated vehicle risk assessments, such as Commercial Crew, Starliner, Orion, Artemis, or comparable initiatives.

• Regulatory and safety expertise: Familiarity with FAA Part 450 flight safety analysis, launch licensing, range safety assessments, expected casualty calculations, probability-of-failure analysis, and debris risk evaluation.

• NASA standards and human-rating requirements: Understanding of NASA PRA guidance, Loss of Crew and Loss of Mission metrics, human-rating processes, and the integration of probabilistic risk assessment with system safety documentation.

• Additional technical skills: Experience with Human Reliability Analysis, software risk assessment, launch abort modeling, or commercial launch provider programs is highly desirable.

• Communication and collaboration: Excellent technical writing, presentation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to translate complex quantitative findings and modeling assumptions into clear recommendations for technical and nontechnical stakeholders.

• Autonomy and accountability: Ability to work independently across multiple projects, manage competing priorities, engage effectively with engineering teams, and maintain high standards of analytical accuracy and documentation.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation: Annual salary range of $100,000–$200,000, depending on qualifications, experience, and role alignment.

• Medical coverage: Medical insurance options to support employee healthcare needs.

• Dental and vision insurance: Coverage options for dental care and vision-related expenses.

• Health spending accounts: Access to Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA), subject to plan eligibility.

• Life and disability protection: Life insurance and disability insurance benefits.

• Additional insurance options: Critical illness and accident insurance coverage.

• Retirement savings: Access to a 401(k) retirement savings plan.

• Employee ownership opportunity: Participation in an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), subject to applicable plan terms.

• Paid time off: Paid leave and company holidays.

• Remote work flexibility: Remote opportunities across the United States for well-qualified candidates, with hybrid arrangements preferred for professionals near Houston or Denver.

• Mission-driven work: The opportunity to contribute to human spaceflight safety, commercial launch reliability, and complex aerospace engineering programs.

• Inclusive workplace: An equal opportunity employment environment committed to diversity, inclusion, and nondiscrimination.