Manager, Off-Planet Science at ICON in Austin, TX

ICON is seeking a Manager, Off-Planet Geoscience to build and lead the team that defines, produces, and transforms the lunar and Martian regolith simulants underpinning ICON's off-planet construction program. This role owns the regolith pipeline end to end — from simulant specification and validation through ceramic process development for structural materials — and directs the geoscience and materials science work that allows ICON's robotic construction systems to be designed, tested, and qualified on Earth for use beyond it.

About the Opportunity

As part of a small, passionate, accomplished team, you will lead the geoscience and materials efforts that turn planetary regolith into a buildable resource. As an ICONIC, you will be an industry leader establishing the methods, standards, and processes for in-situ resource utilization in construction — work that has no established playbook. You will have the opportunity to advance humankind's ability to provide dignified, affordable, resilient, and sustainable shelter on Earth and beyond. This role is based on ICON's Austin, TX campus and reports to the Senior Director of Off-Planet Systems.

Roles & Responsibilities

• Lead, hire, and develop a team of planetary geoscientists, materials scientists, and laboratory technicians; set operational objectives, delegate assignments, and manage performance.

• Lead process development, characterization, and optimization for converting regolith simulants into structural ceramics using sintering, melt processing, and related thermal methods; set technical direction and review DOE plans and results.

• Partner with ICME teams to validate computational models against experimental data and use simulation results to guide regolith-to-ceramic process development, closing the loop between modeling and experiments.

• Guide geotechnical input to robotic excavation, conveyance, and processing systems, and co-own qualification of regolith handling systems with mechanical and civil engineering leads.

• Oversee testing of simulants and derived products under simulated lunar and Martian environmental conditions, including vacuum and thermal-vacuum chamber campaigns.

• Manage the department budget, laboratory resources, and capital equipment plans, and make resourcing tradeoffs across concurrent technical programs.

• Represent ICON's off-planet geoscience work to space agencies, research partners, and vendors; author and review technical content for proposals, reports, and program reviews.

• Establish laboratory procedures, data management practices, and safety standards for regolith handling, including fine particulate and dust controls.

• Own ICON's regolith simulant program, establishing specifications for the physical, chemical, mineralogical, and geotechnical properties required by ICON's research and mission goals, and approving fit-for-purpose criteria for each use case.

• Direct the sourcing, procurement, and production of lunar and Martian regolith simulants from conception through delivery; manage vendor relationships, contracts, quality requirements, and schedules.

• Establish and enforce validation protocols that benchmark simulants against planetary analog and mission-returned data, and approve simulant lots for internal use.

Required Qualifications

• Master's degree in Planetary Geology, Geoscience, Materials Science, Ceramic Engineering, Civil or Geotechnical Engineering, or a closely related field; a Bachelor's degree with equivalent additional experience will be considered.

• 7+ years of related experience in planetary geoscience, materials characterization, simulant development, or ceramic processing, including 3+ years of people management.

• Demonstrated experience validating geologic or synthetic materials through mineralogical, chemical, and physical testing.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including presenting technical findings to senior leadership and external partners.

• Ability to lift up to 50 pounds.

Preferred Qualifications

• Ph.D. in a relevant field.

• Direct experience with lunar and/or Martian regolith simulants.

• Experience designing, operating, or running test campaigns in vacuum or thermal-vacuum chambers.

• Hands-on experience with ceramic processing methods such as conventional, microwave, or laser sintering, or melt casting.

• Experience collaborating with ICME or computational modeling teams.

• Familiarity with planetary and space analog testing environments.

• Experience leading work on NASA or other government-funded R&D programs.

• Knowledge of mechanical or robotic systems for excavation or conveyance.

• Background leading teams in low-volume, high-mix R&D environments.