Senior Camera Systems Engineer

at Planetlabs

San Francisco, CA, hybrid, senior, full time, USD 1,82,900–2,28,600 / year, 10+ years

posted 16 Mar 2026

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CMOS image sensor architecture
High-speed serialization protocols
Image Signal Processing
Aerospace Engineering
Radiometry
Systems Engineering
Optical Engineering
Physics
Electrical Engineering

About the role

Posted: 2026-03-16

Welcome to Planet. We believe in using space to help life on Earth.

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. This constellation delivers an unprecedented dataset of empirical information via a revolutionary cloud-based platform to authoritative figures in commercial, environmental, and humanitarian sectors. We are both a space company and data company all rolled into one.

Customers and users across the globe use Planet's data to develop new technologies, drive revenue, power research, and solve our world’s toughest obstacles.

As we control every component of hardware design, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering, our office is a truly inspiring mix of experts from a variety of domains.

We have a people-centric approach toward culture and community and we strive to iterate in a way that puts our team members first and prepares our company for growth. Join Planet and be a part of our mission to change the way people see the world.

Planet is a global company with employees working remotely world wide and joining us from offices in San Francisco, Washington DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and The Netherlands.

Planet seeks a Senior Camera Systems Engineer to serve as the primary system architect and technical lead for our next-generation satellite camera modules. In this role, you will bridge the gap between mission-level imaging goals and hardware implementation, orchestrating the end-to-end lifecycle of our camera systems. You will drive requirements flowdown, lead cross-functional trade studies, and manage key technical relationships with external image sensor and camera component vendors.

You will collaborate closely with Electrical, Mechanical, Thermal, Optical, and Flight Software teams to optimize the camera system to meet our tight SWaP-C (Size, Weight, Power, Cost, and Schedule) and electro-optical performance targets.

This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to work from our San Francisco office 3 days per week.

Impact You’ll Own

- Translate top-level remote sensing performance requirements into clear, verifiable specifications for the camera subsystem (including image sensor, proximity electronics, lens/optical interfaces, and thermal management).

- Serve as the primary technical point of contact for external image sensor foundries and camera component vendors; drive statement of work (SOW) definitions, technical milestones, and critical design reviews (PDR/CDR).

Read from job-boards.greenhouse.io, last seen 2d ago.

What comes with it

These offerings are dependent on employment type and geographical location, based upon applicable law or company policy.

- Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans

- Health Savings Account (HSA) with a company contribution

- Generous Paid Time Off in addition to holidays and company-wide days off

- 16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave

- Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

- Home Office Reimbursement

- Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement

- Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning

- Equity

- Commuter Benefits (if local to an office)

- Volunteering Paid Time Off

The US base salary range for this full-time position at the commencement of employment is listed below. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary short-term and long-term incentives (bonus and equity). The final salary range is determined by job related experience, skills and location. The range displays our typical hiring range for new hire salaries in US locations only. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

San Francisco Salary Range

$182,900—$228,600 USD

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Why we care so much about Belonging. We’re dedicated to helping the whole Planet, and to do that we must strive to represent all of it within each of our offices and on all of our teams. That’s why Planet is guided by an ultimate north star of Belonging—dreaming big as we approach our ongoing work. If this job intrigues you, but you’re thinking you might not have all the qualifications, please... do apply! At Planet, we are looking for well-rounded people from around the world who can contribute to more ways than just what is listed in this job description. We don’t just fill positions, we aspire to fulfill people’s careers, most excited about folks who are motivated by our underlying humanitarian efforts. We are a few orbits around the sun before we get to where we want to be, so we hope you’re excited to come along for the ride.

About the role

What they are looking for

What comes with it