Turbomachinery Engineer – Rocket Propulsion

ABOUT ASTROBASE SPACE TECHNOLOGIES

Astrobase is a pioneering spacetech startup founded by prominent Senior ISRO scientists and IIT Bombay alumni with over 20 years of experience in designing, manufacturing, testing and flying advanced Cryogenic Launch Vehicles. Driven by a vision to make India a Space tech powerhouse, we are developing innovative launch vehicles that will transform space exploration. At Astrobase, you’ll be part of a team creating history in the Indian space industry. Our goal is to become the first private space company from India to land on the moon economically.

ROLE OVERVIEW

We are hiring Turbomachinery Engineers to join our Turbomachinery Department. We are hiring 3–4 engineers for this role. Each engineer will work on the activities described below, with a primary focus on one area (pump and turbine design, rotordynamics, or integration and testing) based on their background, while contributing across all three. Whichever area you join, you will own your part of the turbopump, and drive improvements in the hardware through design and testing.

1. Pump & Turbine Design

You will drive the pump and turbine design improvements and close the loop between design, analysis and test: predict how the hardware should perform, compare it with what we measure, explain the differences and drive the design improvements that follow.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

You will work on

•    Driving the pump design for head, efficiency and suction performance.

•    Owning axial thrust balancing of the pump: predicting axial loads across the operating range, designing the balance features (balance piston or drum, wear-ring clearances, balance holes) and validating the balance through test using bearing load, axial position and cavity pressure measurements.

•    Driving the turbine design (nozzles, rotor blades and manifolds) for power and efficiency.

•    Maintaining the design baseline: 1-D meanline sizing models, performance predictions and design records for pump and turbine.

•    Providing inputs to CFD and FEA to analyze flow paths and stresses in impellers, blades and disks, and confirm design margins.

•    Correlating test data with design and analysis predictions (pump curves, cavitation performance, turbine efficiency, axial thrust and vibration) and updating the models to match.

•    Finding the root causes of performance gaps and anomalies, and turning them into design improvements.

•    Owning and presenting the design at the PDR, TDR and VDR, closing out review actions and getting clearance at each stage, including release for manufacturing; releasing later changes under change control with supporting analysis and test correlation.

•    Taking part in cold-flow and hot-fire test campaigns at test sites, supporting test setup, on-site data review and post-test inspection.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATION

•    2- 5 years in pump or turbine design (centrifugal pumps, inducers, gas or steam turbines, or turbopumps); graduates with strong turbomachinery thesis or project work will be considered.

•    Strong grasp of pump and turbine fundamentals: velocity triangles, specific speed, meanline design, performance maps, cavitation and axial thrust.

•    Hands-on experience with CFD (ANSYS CFX, Fluent or STAR-CCM+) and FEA for turbomachinery components.

•    Experience comparing analysis or test data with predictions, using Python or MATLAB.

•    CAD and GD&T skills to take a design change from idea to released drawing, and the ownership to drive it through test.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATION

•    Turbomachinery design tools (AxSTREAM, CFturbo, ANSYS BladeModeler/Vista or Concepts NREC).

•    Understanding of how pump and turbine design drives axial thrust and rotor loads.

•    Pump or turbine test-rig experience.

2. Rotordynamics

You will be responsible for rotordynamic analysis and mechanical design of high-speed rotating machinery for rocket turbopump applications, including rotor dynamics, vibration, bearing and seal interactions, and stability assessment.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

•    Owning the rotordynamics of the turbopumps, including shaft, bearing and seal characteristics, stiffness and damping.

•    Analyzing critical speeds, mode shapes, Campbell diagrams and stability of the turbopumps.

•    Supporting cold-flow and hot testing of turbopumps: executing tests, analyzing vibration data, mapping critical speeds and studying the stability of the system.

•    Supporting modal analysis and vibration testing, and correlating analytical results with experimental data.

•    Collaborating with the turbomachinery design, mechanical design and test engineering teams.

•    Presenting the rotordynamic analysis, test plans and test results at the PDR, TDR and VDR, closing out review actions and getting clearance at each stage.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATION

•    Strong fundamentals in rotordynamics, mechanical vibrations and structural dynamics.

•    Understanding of bearings, seals, shaft design and rotor-support systems.

•    Knowledge of Campbell diagrams, critical speeds, mode shapes and stability analysis.

•    Understanding of rotor balancing, unbalance response, vibration and instability mechanisms.

•    Familiarity with ANSYS Rotordynamics or equivalent.

•    Proficiency in Python for engineering calculations and data analysis.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATION

•    Academic projects, internships or industry experience in rotordynamics, turbomachinery or high-speed rotating equipment.

•    Exposure to modal testing, vibration instrumentation and experimental validation.

3. Integration & Testing

You will be a hands-on engineer supporting assembly, integration and ground testing of turbopump systems. This area suits someone with a strong foundation in fluid systems and rotating machinery, plus a real interest in growing their turbomachinery expertise.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

•    Planning, preparing and executing on-ground testing of turbopumps (including pumps and turbines) through cold-flow, spin tests and hot-fire support.

•    Leading mechanical integration of turbopumps with feed systems, test stands and engine assemblies.

•    Performing and verifying rotor balancing (static and dynamic) to defined requirements.

•    Following and improving assembly procedures, torque specifications, cleanliness standards and inspection checklists.

•    Analyzing test data (pressure, flow, temperature, vibration, speed) and supporting anomaly investigations.

•    Working with design, manufacturing and quality teams to close out non-conformances and feed lessons back into design.

•    Maintaining test documentation, assembly records and traceability.

•    Presenting integration and test plans, readiness and test results at the PDR, TDR and VDR, closing out review actions and getting clearance at each stage.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

•    2–5 years of experience in turbomachinery or rotating equipment.

•    Hands-on experience with ground testing, test stand operations and instrumentation.

•    Working knowledge of rotor dynamics and balancing requirements.

•    Familiarity with assembly standards: torque control, fits and tolerances, bearing and seal installation.

•    Ability to read engineering drawings and apply GD&T.

•    Experience with vibration analysis and data acquisition systems.

•    Comfortable working on the shop floor and at test sites.

•    Good to have for this area

•    Exposure to cryogenic fluids or high-pressure propellant systems.

•    Experience with bearings and seals for high-speed rotating machinery.

•    Familiarity with MATLAB/Python for data analysis, or CAD (SolidWorks, NX, CATIA).

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES ACROSS ALL ROLES

•    Correlate test data with design and analysis predictions, and update models to match.

•    Find the root causes of performance gaps and test anomalies, and turn them into design or process improvements.

•    Own and present your work at the Preliminary Design Review (PDR), Test Design Review (TDR) and Validation Design Review (VDR), close out review actions and get clearance at each stage.

•    Take part in cold-flow and hot-fire test campaigns, including test setup, on-site data review and post-test inspection.

•    Work closely with design, manufacturing, quality and test teams to close out non-conformances.

•    Keep design records, test documentation and traceability up to date.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS ACROSS ALL ROLEs

•    B.E./B.Tech or M.E./M.Tech (Bachelor's or Master's) in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering or equivalent.

•    0–5 years in turbomachinery or high-speed rotating machinery, plus the area-specific requirements above.

•    Fresh graduates with strong fundamentals and relevant projects are welcome. Candidates with 2–5 years of experience should demonstrate practical experience in their focus area: pump or turbine design, rotor analysis, vibration and stability, or turbomachinery testing and integration.

•    Python or MATLAB for engineering calculations and data analysis.

•    Strong documentation habits and attention to detail.

•    Keen interest in learning turbomachinery design, performance and failure modes.

•    Common Good to Have

•    Liquid rocket engine turbopump experience, especially with cryogenic propellants.

•    Knowledge of safety protocols for high-pressure and hazardous test environments.

•    Experience in aerospace, rocket propulsion, gas turbines or industrial pumps.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

•    This role is part of the Turbomachinery Department. It combines office-based engineering work with regular travel to assembly and testing sites to support turbopump builds, integration, and cold-flow and hot-fire testing.

WHY WORK WITH US?

At Astrobase, we believe in the power of human ingenuity and collaboration to push the boundaries of space exploration. As a team member, you’ll be:

1.    Creating History: Join us in developing cutting-edge launch vehicles, playing a pivotal role in transforming space access and shaping the future of space exploration.

2.    Collaborating with Experts: Work alongside ISRO scientists and industry veterans with decades of experience in designing India’s iconic space missions like Chandrayaan 3

3.    Growth Opportunities: As Astrobase scales, you’ll have the chance to take on leadership roles and be part of an expanding organization driving change in the Indian space sector.

Pioneering Space Technology: Your contributions will not only impact Astrobase but also influence the global space ecosystem. Be part of something larger than yourself