Geo Owl · SDVOSB · Est. 2013

Senior EO Imagery Scientist

NGA MAVEN PROGRAM · ELECTRO-OPTICAL · GEOINT · EXPERT · KEY POSITION

Electro-optical imagery tells a story — but only to someone who understands the sensor, the collection geometry, the phenomenology, and how to turn raw pixels into analytically actionable products. On NGA Maven, that expertise directly shapes the quality of AI/ML training data that informs national security decisions. This role is for an EO subject matter expert who can own the science end-to-end: from sensor integration and preprocessing pipelines to curating imagery that makes machine learning models better.

Role Overview

As the Senior EO Imagery Scientist, you are the program's authoritative voice on electro-optical collection, phenomenology, and exploitation. You'll drive technical direction for EO data acquisition and preprocessing — integrating emerging sensors, building tiling and conversion pipelines, generating pre-labels, and curating imagery to government-directed priorities. You'll collaborate closely with the SAR Imagery Scientist and ensure coincident EO coverage aligns with SAR operations. Your work feeds directly into Maven's model development pipeline.

A Day in the Life

• ✓Execute daily EO imagery curation: assess image quality using NIIRS and information-theoretic metrics, prioritize acquisitions per government direction, and convert files to required formats (PNG, NITF)
• ✓Tile full-size imagery into precise pixel dimensions or geospatial boundaries, accounting for orthorectification to ensure spatial accuracy at tile edges
• ✓Generate pre-labels from intelligence reporting, machine-derived observations, and human observations — conforming to defined ontology standards to tip and cue human labelers
• ✓Integrate emerging EO sensors into Maven data pipelines; assess metadata, format, and schema differences and recommend ETL adaptations
• ✓Coordinate with the SAR Imagery Scientist to provide coincident EO coverage aligned to SAR collection areas and temporal windows
• ✓Oversee weekly processed imagery deliveries; execute ad-hoc quick-turn deliveries as operational needs arise

Why This Role Matters

Core Responsibilities

• ▸Integrate emerging EO sensors and platforms into Maven data pipelines; assess metadata, format, and schema differences and adapt ETL processes accordingly
• ▸Develop and implement mathematical conversion models to transform data labels across imagery types (PNG, NITF) and between orthorectified and non-orthorectified imagery
• ▸Execute tiling and preprocessing of full-size raw imagery to specified formats and dimensions while maintaining geospatial accuracy and metadata integrity
• ▸Analyze and assess image quality and sensor metadata to curate acquisitions in alignment with government-directed priorities
• ▸Generate pre-labels from intelligence reporting, machine- and human-derived observations conforming to defined ontology standards
• ▸Identify and implement curation methods (NLP-based intelligence extraction, automated/semi-automated machine techniques) to maximize high-value imagery yield
• ▸Develop, test, and evaluate new algorithms, methodologies, and products using EO data and cloud-based solutions to advance Maven preprocessing capabilities

Required Qualifications

• ✓Active TS/SCI
• ✓4+ years as an EO expert with deep understanding of collection, phenomenology, image formation processes, and exploitation products
• ✓Experience exploiting the electromagnetic spectrum (electro-optical) to determine the occurrence and location of objects of interest
• ✓Experience developing, testing, and evaluating algorithms and processes using EO imagery; proficiency with advanced processing tools (Python, MATLAB, Google Earth Engine, or similar)
• ✓Experience communicating EO imagery capabilities, methodologies, and products to both technical and non-technical audiences
• ✓Deep understanding of remote sensing principles, imagery processing, and advanced exploitation methods; experience with NIIRS and information-theoretic image quality metrics

Tools, Technologies & Tradecraft

What Makes Someone Successful in This Role

• ▸You think in phenomenology — collection geometry, sensor characteristics, and scene conditions are second nature, not references you look up
• ▸You can move from scientific analysis to code: writing Python to automate tiling, validate metadata, and build preprocessing workflows
• ▸You're rigorous about data integrity — you understand that a tile with bad geospatial bounds corrupts a label, and you build pipelines that prevent it
• ▸You adapt quickly when a new sensor shows up with incomplete documentation — you assess, hypothesize, test, and integrate
• ▸You communicate your science clearly — whether briefing a program manager or writing documentation another analyst can actually use

Is This Role For You?

Career Growth & Professional Value

This role builds deep expertise at the intersection of EO science, AI/ML data engineering, and national security GEOINT. You'll gain hands-on experience integrating emerging sensors in pre-IOC environments, developing production-grade preprocessing pipelines, and contributing to a program that advances the state of the art in overhead imagery exploitation. That combination of scientific depth and applied engineering experience is rare — and highly valued across the intelligence and defense community.

About Geo Owl

Geo Owl is a mission-first geospatial intelligence and national security company supporting defense, intelligence, and Government missions. We value tradecraft, humility, precision, service, accountability, and people who care deeply about the mission and the team. On roles like this, our goal is to give serious professionals work that is technically meaningful, operationally relevant, and connected to outcomes that matter.