Geospatial Data Scientist

Title Geospatial Data Scientist At KBR, we deliver science, technology and engineering solutions to governments and companies around the world. KBR employs approximately 37,000 people worldwide with customers in more than 85 countries and operations in over 28 countries.

KBR is proud to work with its customers across the globe to provide technology, value-added services, and long-term operations and maintenance services to ensure consistent delivery with predictable results. Trinzic is the future independent company to be created through the planned spin-off of KBR's Mission Technology Solutions business, expected in January 2027.

Our people work at the frontier of what is possible, delivering solutions in challenging environments and advancing some of the world's highest-priority national security and space missions. Backed by decades of mission success, deep expertise, and trusted partnerships, Trinzic will launch as a global organization with more than 18,000 employees supporting customers around the world.

Join us at a defining moment and help shape the future of a company built to tackle complex challenges and make a meaningful impact. Candidates who join KBR's Mission Technology Solutions business before the spin-off will transition to Trinzic when the separation is complete and will not need to reapply for employment.

Title

Geospatial Data Scientist KBR is seeking a full-time Geospatial Data Scientist to join its talented team in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. KBR, headquartered in Houston Texas, is the primary contractor to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for performing work at the Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center ( http://eros.usgs.gov/ ) near Sioux Falls, SD ( http://www.siouxfalls.org ).

The successful candidate will become an integral part of the Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC, https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/centers/lp-daac), a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)-funded project located at the USGS EROS Center. The LP DAAC operates as a partnership between the USGS and NASA and is a component of NASA’s Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS).

Geospatial data scientists, system engineers, user services representatives, and outreach staff work together to support LP DAAC activities and distribute data to the earth science community.

The Geospatial Data Scientist will utilize Geographic Information System (GIS) software and scripting techniques against a broad spectrum of remote sensing data, assessing their suitability for NASA’s Application for Extracting and Exploring Analysis Ready Samples (AppEEARS) and validating AppEEARS outputs against source data.

The selected candidate will also work closely with science teams and data providers to understand user community needs, then develop science enablement materials that make it easier for those communities and users broadly to work with the data.

The candidate will also identify and develop practical solutions to science application problems, investigate innovative and emerging technologies, and author web content and scientific presentations.

Responsibilities

Core Responsibilities Participate in research and data evaluation activities as part of a multidisciplinary team that includes task leads, system development teams, communications and outreach, and user services Collaborate with data providers and science teams to understand dataset characteristics and the needs of their user communities Build and expand product knowledge alongside NASA mission science teams so that user inquiries can be thoroughly addressed and resolved Evaluate remote sensing datasets and associated metadata to confirm accuracy and compliance with data standards and apply quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) methodologies to assess dataset suitability for and validate outputs from AppEEARS Use GIS software and scripting techniques to analyze the specifications of new products and metadata and confirm that results are expected and accurate Use version control systems (e.g., Git/GitHub) to develop, document, and share scripts and enablement materials collaboratively Author web content and presentation materials for conferences and workshops as opportunities arise Develop science enablement materials, such as Jupyter and R notebooks, to help user communities work with datasets archived by NASA Earthdata Create maps, charts, graphs, tables, and other figures for use in presentations and publications Attend occasional scientific conferences and meetings to present project work and collaborate with other professionals in the discipline Prepare and presents project results and methodology to customers as requested Coordinate and track tasks and deliverables across multiple concurrent projects and science teams using project management tools Maintain clear technical documentation of workflows, scripts, and QA procedures for internal reference and user-facing materials Maintain regular communication with staff, customers, and managers Required Skills Fundamental understanding remote sensing data from multispectral, hyperspectral, thermal, and LiDAR sensors Demonstrated knowledge of GIS techniques, remote sensing principles, and related science applications Practical experience processing and analyzing imagery with GIS and remote sensing software such as ArcGIS, ArcGIS Pro, ERDAS, ENVI, and QGIS Proficiency in scripting languages, such as Python and/or R Experience using version control systems (e.g., Git/GitHub) to manage and collaborate on scripts and code Familiarity with raster and vector data processing techniques Familiarity with metadata standards and experience applying QA/QC methodologies to remote sensing data products Ability to communicate regularly, professionally, and clearly at general, technical, and management levels to inform team members, science teams, and the science user community Research experience in interdisciplinary working environments Strong attention to organization, detail, and record keeping Excellent written and oral communication skills, including effective questioning, listening, and presentation skills High degree of initiative and self-motivation Experience developing training materials and organizing and conducting training workshops Excellent interpersonal skills, experience working effectively with a variety of stakeholders and a demonstrated ability to collaborate well across disciplines and with key collaborative institutions and agencies Working knowledge of main remote sensing and GIS tools and software Research experience in interdisciplinary working environments Excellent organizational and time management skills Experience coordinating and tracking tasks and deliverables across multiple concurrent projects, using project management tools or methodologies (e.g., Kanban, Agile) Experience maintaining clear, organized technical documentation for workflows, code, and data quality procedures Desired Skills Familiarity with Python-based geospatial libraries (e.g., xarray, rasterio, earthaccess) Familiarity with machine learning or statistical modeling techniques (e.g., random forest and other classification/regression models) applied to remote sensing or science data use cases Experience working directly in cloud computing environments (e.g., AWS, NASA Earthdata Cloud) for geospatial data processing Familiarity with cloud-optimized geospatial data formats and catalogs, such as Cloud Optimized GeoTIFF (COG), Zarr, NetCDF, and the SpatioTemporal Asset Catalog (STAC) Experience interacting with or testing application programming interfaces (APIs) to access, process, or validate geospatial data Working understanding of large language models (LLMs) and AI-assisted agents/tools, with day-to-day experience using them to review or develop documents and code Preferred Education/Experience Bachelor’s degree in Remote Sensing, Geography, Environmental Science, or related field Master’s degree preferred 3+ years of directly related professional experience Special Requirements Must be a U.S. permanent resident and eligible to obtain the government security credential required for this position.

KBR partners with several other companies to fulfill its requirements as a government contractor. The selected subcontracting companies align their benefits as closely as possible to those of KBR.

KBR Benefits KBR offers a selection of competitive lifestyle benefits which could include 401K plan with company match, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, AD&D, flexible spending account, disability, paid time off, or flexible work schedule. We support career advancement through professional training and development.

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KBR Benefits | KBR Belong, Connect and Grow at KBR At KBR, we are passionate about our people and our Zero Harm culture. These inform all that we do and are at the heart of our commitment to, and ongoing journey toward being a People First company. That commitment is central to our team of team’s philosophy and fosters an environment where everyone can Belong, Connect and Grow.

We Deliver – Together. KBR is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, veteran status, genetic information, union status and/or beliefs, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

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