Senior Radar Systems Engineer (SETA) - Spaceborne GEOINT

Job ID: 2617928
Location: Chantilly, VA, US
Date Posted: 2026-10-14
Category: Engineering and Sciences
Subcategory: Systems Engineer
Schedule: Full-Time
Shift: Day Job
Travel: Yes - 10% of the time
Minimum Clearance Required: TS.SCI_wPoly
Clearance Level Must Be Able to Obtain: None
Potential for Remote Work: ORA_ON_SITE
Description
SAIC is hiring a Senior Radar Systems Engineer to provide Systems Engineering and Technical Assistance (SETA) support to a classified Government customer in Chantilly, VA. You will support the development, integration, test, launch, and checkout of a radar-enabled national security space system, providing technical analysis, contractor oversight, test data review, and anomaly resolution across space and ground segments.
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Analyze radar payload designs, RF architectures, waveforms, and sensor performance for spaceborne GEOINT missions.
• Provide independent SETA insight into contractor activities, including design reviews, technical trades, risks, and requirements/schedule compliance.
• Develop, refine, and trace system- and payload-level requirements across space, ground, and mission-processing segments.
• Support integration, test, launch, and on-orbit checkout, including test data review, performance assessment, and anomaly resolution.
• Evaluate end-to-end mission architecture (tasking, collection, downlink, processing, exploitation, dissemination) and recommend technical improvements.
• Prepare and deliver concise technical briefings and recommendations to government leaders and mission stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM or related discipline and nine (9)+ years of relevant experience; OR
  • Master's degree and seven (7)+ years of relevant experience; OR
  • PhD and four (4)+ years of relevant experience;
  • Additional directly relevant radar/space systems experience may be substituted in lieu of a degree per SAIC policy.
• Knowledge or experience with radar systems, RF sensing, SAR, GMTI, or radar phenomenology sufficient to evaluate contractor designs and performance.
• Experience supporting complex space or airborne sensing programs in systems engineering (requirements, architecture, integration/test, or mission operations).
• Familiarity with government acquisition processes and space/ground integration for ISR, GEOINT, or national security space missions.
• Experience using analysis/modeling tools such as MATLAB, Python, STK, or similar.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for presenting technical findings to senior stakeholders.

Clearance Requirements:

• Active TS/SCI with a current Poly.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a government polygraph.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with a prime contractor, radar payload developer, or FFRDC on spaceborne or airborne radar programs.
• Hands-on or analytic experience with SAR, GMTI, radar image formation, or radar exploitation algorithms.
• Experience supporting NRO, NGA, or other IC/DoD space or GEOINT programs in a SETA/acquisition role.
• Working knowledge of MBSE/SysML or similar digital-engineering tools.
• Advanced degree (MS or PhD) in Electrical Engineering, Radar/Remote Sensing, Physics, or a related field.

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to work onsite full-time in a secure facility in Chantilly, VA.
• Ability to sit or stand for extended periods while working at a computer or in meetings.
• Occasional lifting of items such as laptops and documents (up to ~20 lbs).

2026.10.2
Target salary range: $120,001 - $160,000. The estimate displayed represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors.
SAIC is a premier technology integrator providing full life cycle services and solutions in the technical, engineering, intelligence, and enterprise information technology markets. SAIC is Redefining Ingenuity through its deep customer and domain knowledge to enable the delivery of systems engineering and integration offerings for large, complex projects. SAIC's approximately 15,000 employees are driven by integrity and mission focus to serve customers in the U.S. federal government. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, SAIC has annual revenues of approximately $4.5 billion. For more information, visit saic.com. For information on the benefits SAIC offers, see .