Our team and mission

You will be working within the Galileo Programme Office, part of the Galileo and EGNOS Programme Department, which is integrated into the European Space Agency’s Directorate of Navigation. More specifically, you will join the System Integration and Verification (SIV) team, collaborating closely with engineering, performance, and research and development teams involved in both the Galileo and EGNOS programmes.

Galileo is the European Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), providing highly accurate and autonomous Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) services, along with a Search and Rescue (SAR) capability.

EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) is a Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) that enhances the performance of GPS by improving its accuracy and reliability through correction and integrity messages. The upcoming EGNOS V3.0, currently in testing and deployment, will also provide augmentation for Galileo signals.

Development of both Galileo and EGNOS is carried out by ESA on behalf of the European Commission, while EUSPA (European Union Agency for the Space Programme) is responsible for operations and service provision.

About the SIV Team

The System Integration and Verification (SIV) team is currently engaged in qualification activities for both the first generation (G1G) and second generation (G2G) of the Galileo system.

• on the G1G side, the team's primary objective is to qualify system updates and new services, ensuring that these enhancements maintain service continuity and do not compromise overall system performance;
• for the G2G programme, the team is responsible for the incremental and Agile qualification of the next-generation control and mission segments, as well as the G2G satellites and their evolved system architecture and services. These advancements represent a significant evolution over the first generation, with improvements in performance, resilience, and capabilities.

The SIV team works in close coordination with other ESA teams in engineering, deployment, and system performance. This collaboration ensures that each qualification step is aligned with the goal of preserving and improving the quality and reliability of the Galileo system.

Additionally, the team contributes to the research and development of innovative tools to support system performance evaluation, aiding the continuous improvement and modernization of the GNSS infrastructure.

Candidates interested are encouraged to visit the ESA website: http://www.esa.int

Field(s) of activity for the internship

Topic of the internship: Galileo/EGNOS Receiver Software Engineering

You will be contributing to an ESA Research and Development project focused on the development of a software-defined Galileo and EGNOS receiver. This receiver is being designed with multiple objectives:

• to support research and development activities related to the Galileo and EGNOS programmes and their associated services;
• to enable performance assessment of these satellite navigation systems;
• to serve as a fully open-source educational tool, accessible to the general public and engineering students alike, promoting hands-on learning in satellite navigation technologies.

Your Role

As a software engineer and developer, your primary responsibility will be the design and implementation of the receiver’s back-end software. This includes the full processing chain from:

• decoding the raw data received from a software-defined radio (SDR) device;
• performing Position, Velocity, and Time (PVT) computations, with a focus on Galileo and EGNOS signals.

You will also work on optimising resource usage to ensure that the software can operate efficiently on low-power platforms, such as Raspberry Pi or other single-board computers.

If time permits, you may also contribute to the design and development of the front-end software, including the client interface and user experience components of the receiver.

Collaboration and Support

Throughout the project, you will perform your assignments in direct collaboration with system, signal-in-space, performance, and user segment engineers from both the Galileo and EGNOS programmes, who will provide support and guidance during the various stages of design, implementation, and testing.

Additional Opportunities

As part of your internship, you will also have the opportunity to participate in Young NAV activities—ESA’s community for young professionals within the Directorate of Navigation—allowing you to engage in collaborative R&D projects alongside other trainees and early-career engineers. 

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation
Operational Efficiency
Fostering Cooperation
Relationship Management
Continuous Improvement
Forward Thinking

For more information, please refer to ESA Core Behavioural Competencies guidebook

Education

You must be a university student, preferably studying at master’s level. In addition, you must be able to prove that you will be enrolled at your University for the entire duration of the internship.

Additional requirements

The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another ESA Member State language is an asset.

During the interview, your motivation for applying to this role will be explored.

• a solid background in signal processing is preferred, and knowledge of software architecture is considered a strong advantage;
• experience with common programming languages such as C, C++, and Python is expected. Familiarity with AI-powered Integrated Development Environments (IDEs), such as Cursor or Windsurf, is also considered an asset.

Strong interpersonal and communication skills are essential, along with the ability to work effectively in a multicultural environment, both independently and as part of a collaborative team.