Senior DevOps Engineer II

rocketlab

Chantilly, VA · Chantilly · United States

Posted Dec 30, 2025

Other
On-site
120 OS - Software Engineering

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Job description

ABOUT ROCKET LAB

Rocket Lab is the end-to-end space company building rockets, spacecraft, and critical subsystems that keep the world connected, protected, expand humanity’s reach to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. We move fast, build real hardware for meaningful missions, and make the impossible routine. Come shape the future with us.

At Rocket Lab, we’re not just launching rockets — we're building the future of space. Our Space Systems team builds everything from complete spacecraft, precision payloads to the components and subsystems that allow them to thrive in space, like solar panels, flight software, star trackers, optical systems, separation systems, radios, and more.

Our Space Systems team has enabled more than 1,700 missions, ranging from interplanetary exploration, in-space manufacturing to national security and defense initiatives. The team has built spacecraft, payloads, and components for missions to the Moon and Mars, working with partners including NASA, the Space Development Agency, and the U.S. Space Force. Whether it’s a single high-performance spacecraft, constellation, or the vertically integrated components that help them get to space — our world class Space Systems team is empowering some of the boldest and most ambitious space missions.

SENIOR DEVOPS ENGINEER II

Rocket Lab’s Optical Systems division solves mission-critical space domain and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) challenges for Department of Defense (DoD) and Intelligence Community (IC) customers. Our vision is to revolutionize the space-based payload market with innovative and novel designs for space, terrestrial, and airborne environments. Building on more than 20 years of electro-optical and infrared systems innovation from Geost, Optical Systems delivers solutions to the warfighter for responsive, scalable sensing solutions across all orbital domains.

As a Senior DevOps Engineer II based at our Optical Systems site in Chantilly, VA, you will have the opportunity to support Tranche 3 of the U.S. Space Development Agency's (SDA) Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA) by automating CI/CD pipelines and deploying applications for advanced Electro-Optical (EO/IR) technology.

WHAT YOU’LL GET TO DO

Support AWS development, test, and production environments
Collaborate with project leads and team members
Align with Security and IT for policy assurance
Develop and support pipelines that include automation and configurations for containers, data management, and release/deployment solutions for programs
Automate software deployments into varied and complex environments using virtual machines, container technologies, Kubernetes, Cloud environments, and bare metal servers
Support engagements related to assessing, refactoring and identifying opportunities for existing applications to leverage modern application architectures (e.g. containers)
Participate in Agile sprints and associated activities
Support onsite work, as well as travel or offsite work, as needed
Perform other duties as assigned

YOU’LL BRING THESE QUALIFICATIONS AS SENIOR DEVOPS ENGINEER II:

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or computer engineering or equivalent discipline with 8+ years of experience
Experience in Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud-based development and operations environments
Active TS/SCI security clearance

THESE QUALIFICATIONS WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE:

Master’s degree in computer science, engineering, or other technical field
Experience with architecting solutions in AWS Cloud environments
Experience in key AWS services (such as EC2, ELB, RDS, Route53, CloudWatch, S3, etc.)
Experience in supporting DevOps tools and pipeline environments, such as Jira, SharePoint, Bitbucket, Jenkins, SonarQube, and Artifactory
Experience working with Container technologies (such as Kubernetes, Docker, etc.)
Proficiency in Linux system administration
Ability to design, enable, and deliver scalable and automated strategies through Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, such as Ansible and Terraform
Experience supporting cloud network resources such as VPC, URL proxies, private link, DNS, ACLs, Security groups, routing tables, etc.
Background in scripting and/or coding, such as Java, Python, Terraform, and/or Bash
CompTIA Security+ certification (or in pursuit of)
Experience with on-premises to cloud migrations or IT transformations
Experience in database administration; one or more of MySQL, MariaDB, and PostgreSQL
Experience in AWS ElastiCache for Redis
Expertise in the Git version control system command line
Familiarity with Information Security frameworks/standards (i.e. CIS, NIST, RFC2196, etc.)
AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate or Professional
Excellent oral, written, and verbal communication skills

This position may require prolonged periods of sitting, standing, walking, computer work, and occasional exposure to moderate levels of noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.

WHAT TO EXPECT

We’re on a mission to unlock the potential of space to improve life on Earth, but that’s not an easy task. It takes hard work, determination, relentless innovation, teamwork, grit, and an unwavering commitment to achieving what others often deem impossible. Our people out-think, out-work, and out-pace. We pride ourselves on having each other’s backs, checking our egos at the door, and rolling up our sleeves on all tasks big and small. We thrive under pressure, work to tight deadlines, and our focus is always on how we can deliver, rather than dwelling on the challenges that stand in the way.

Important information:

FOR CANDIDATES SEEKING TO WORK IN US OFFICES ONLY:

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Rocket Lab Employees must be a U.S. citizen, lawful U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State and/or the U.S. Department of Commerce, as applicable. Learn more about ITAR here.

Rocket Lab provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment at Rocket Lab, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for the application/interview process for a job in the United States should contact Giulia Johnson at g.biow@rocketlabusa.com.This dedicated resource is intended solely to assist job seekers with disabilities whose disability prevents them from being able to apply/interview. Only messages left for this purpose will be considered. A response to your request may take up to two business days.

FOR CANDIDATES SEEKING TO WORK IN NEW ZEALAND OFFICES ONLY:

For security reasons, background checks will be undertaken prior to any employment offers being made to an applicant. These checks will include nationality checks as it is a requirement of this position that you be eligible to access equipment and data regulated by the United States' International Traffic in Arms Regulations.

Under these Regulations, you may be ineligible for this role if you do not hold citizenship of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the European Union, or a country that is part of NATO, or if you hold ineligible dual citizenship or nationality. For more information on these Regulations, click here ITAR Regulations.