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ltp@utexas.edu
Office Location: ASE 4.216
Luke Peterson
Assistant Professor
Department Research Areas:
Orbital Mechanics
Education:
Ph.D., University of Colorado Boulder
Research Interests:
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Celestial Mechanics, astrodynamics
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Hamiltonian dynamical systems, perturbation theories
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Computation of invariant manifolds, applications to space mission design
Luke Peterson's research ranges from applied astrodynamics to celestial mechanics and computer-assisted proofs in dynamics. He is interested in taking challenging dynamical systems problems arising from astrodynamics applications and realistic solar system models, as well as implementing theoretical and computational techniques from applied math into space mission design practice.
Peterson joined the ASE/EM department as an assistant professor in Fall 2025. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Colorado Boulder in aerospace engineering sciences in Spring 2025, having defended his dissertation in December 2024 under the supervision of Professor Daniel J. Scheeres. His dissertation, entitled "Unifying Semi-analytical and Numerical Methods for Astrodynamics Applications" introduces the idea of local orbital elements in cislunar space.
In 2020, he was awarded the Department of Defense National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship. He completed his undergraduate degree in mathematics (with honors) and physics and astronomy at Northwestern University in 2019.
