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Antares

Senior Structures Engineer

Location

Los Angeles, CA

Wage

$115,000 – $185,000/yr

Employment Type

Full-time

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Posted on September 29, 2026

Job Description

Overview

Antares is on a mission to make clean energy abundant from Earth to the Asteroid Belt by building mass-producible, inherently safe microreactors. The Senior Structures Engineer will lead the design and development of critical reactor structures in a multidisciplinary environment.

Responsibilities

  • Perform thermal, mechanical, and structural analyses for reactor structural components.
  • Define system architecture, operating limits, design margins, and concepts of operation.
  • Develop engineering documentation to support design reviews and verification activities.
  • Lead design, fabrication, and execution of component- and system-level testing.
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate structural systems into reactor design.
  • Support supplier selection, technical evaluations, and resolution of manufacturing issues.
  • Present technical work at design reviews and provide technical leadership throughout the lifecycle.

Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Nuclear Engineering, or a related discipline.
  • 5+ years of professional experience in designing and developing structural systems.
  • Experience in structural design, including hand calculations and material selection.
  • Experience using finite element analysis (FEA) tools for structural performance evaluation.
  • Knowledge of structural design principles and load path development.
  • Demonstrated ability to work effectively on multidisciplinary engineering teams.

Additional Information

  • Ability to work long hours and weekends as necessary to support critical milestones.
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How this job compares in Los Angeles, CA

Pay in context

At roughly $72/hr, this posting sits about 68% above the $43/hr median for welding jobs in Los Angeles, CA — toward the top of a $34–$58/hr middle band drawn from 59 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 88% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. Pay that far above local median usually comes attached to something: a harder cert requirement, travel, night shift, or overtime that isn't really optional. Worth establishing which before you accept.

The local market in Los Angeles, CA

We're tracking 85 other active welding openings in Los Angeles, CA right now, from 57 different employers. 20 of them were added in the last week. Across California as a whole we're tracking 574 other active welding openings from 263 employers. A metro this active generally means you have real leverage — employers here are competing for the same welders. Browse every welding job in Los Angeles, or widen the search to California.

Antares currently has 2 other openings live in California, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in California at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are SpaceX (37), Vast (18), and Relativity Space (17). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within California, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Pasadena at $61/hr, Redondo Beach at $60/hr, and Long Beach at $54/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

Similar openings near Los Angeles, CA

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Senior Structures Engineer figures were last recalculated when this page was built.