About the Role:
We are seeking a Wildfire Data Scientist driven by the challenge of transforming cutting-edge satellite imagery into tangible solutions to prevent catastrophic wildfire. As a new member of our Natural Lands product and engineering team, your primary focus will be to translate pixels into precise indicators of wildfire hazard and exposure. You will spearhead the development of innovative data products designed to deliver clear, crucial insights directly to fire services, land managers, utilities, and government agencies — those on the front lines of wildfire around the world.
This is a unique opportunity to go beyond analyzing data to craft entirely new data-driven solutions. Your deep knowledge of wildfire behavior, fuels, and remote sensing will be critical in building products that empower organizations to make better decisions and efficiently reduce risks in the face of escalating wildfire threats.
Working at Planet, you’ll have access to our unique satellite constellation that images the entire Earth every day. This position allows you to apply your expertise directly at the source of the data, shaping how this powerful global resource can become an indispensable tool for reducing wildfire frequency and severity, in the service of protecting communities and ecosystems. If you are motivated to build, innovate, and see your work directly tackle one of the world’s most pressing environmental challenges, this role offers a significant platform for your expertise.
This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to be in our San Francisco, HQ office 3 days per week.
Impact You’ll Own:
- Design, develop, and implement analysis pipelines for processing, analyzing, and interpreting datasets relevant to vegetation fuels and wildfire hazard.
- Apply and develop statistical, machine learning, and geospatial models to derive actionable insights from complex wildfire-related data sources.
- Collaborate closely with product managers, engineers, and other stakeholders within the team to integrate data-driven solutions into new and existing products.
- Conduct research and stay current with the latest advancements in wildfire science, fuels modeling, remote sensing, and data science.
- Evaluate and validate model performance, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of data pipeline outputs.
- Contribute technical documentation, reports, and potentially peer-reviewed publications showcasing your work and findings.
- Effectively communicate complex findings and technical details to both technical and non-technical audiences.
What You Bring:
- 6+ years of relevant professional experience in wildfire science or a closely related field.
- Excellent foundational knowledge in wildfire-related subject matter.
- Experience working with and analyzing various forms of geospatial data.
- Proficiency in Python and its common data science and geospatial libraries (e.g., Pandas, NumPy, SciPy, Scikit-learn, GDAL, Rasterio, Shapely).
- Experience managing data-intensive projects, from initial conception through to analysis and reporting.
- Advanced analytical, critical thinking, and problem-solving capabilities.
- Familiarity with software development practices (e.g., version control, an understanding of coding standards), though extensive software engineering expertise is not a primary requirement.
What Makes You Stand Out:
- Advanced degree in a wildfire-related discipline (e.g., fire science, fire ecology, environmental science with a focus on wildfire, forestry, geography with fuels modeling experience)
- Direct experience in wildfire behavior modeling, vegetation fuels mapping, or wildfire hazard assessment.
- Experience with wildfire modeling systems (e.g., FARSITE, FlamMap, FSim, Phoenix RapidFire, Vesta Mk2)
- Experience with cloud computing environments (e.g., AWS, GCP, Azure) and their associated data processing and machine learning services.
- Experience developing operational data pipelines or models.
- Demonstrated ability to write scientific reports or publications.
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with experience working in multidisciplinary teams.
Application Deadline:
September 8, 2025 by 11:59 PM PDT
Application link/more info: Wildfire Data Scientist at Planet Labs