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lori.magruder@austin.utexas.edu
512-471-6069
Office Location: ASE 3.220
Lori Magruder
Associate Professor
Director of the Center for Space Research
Myron L. Begeman Fellowship in Engineering
Department Research Areas:
Orbital Mechanics
Education: Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin
Research Interests:
- Remote sensing instrumentation and applications
- Geospatial data science
- Spacecraft dynamics, orbital mechanics, and attitude determination
Lori Magruder is an Associate Professor in the Aerospace Engineering Department at the University of Texas at Austin and holds the Myron L. Begeman Fellowship in Engineering. Magruder’s research has advanced the state-of-the-art in remote sensing and sensemaking for geospatial applications, leading to new uses for space-based observations, new methods to manage data quality and the development of new data products used by the national and international science community. She also serves as the Director of the UT Center for Space Research, an organized research unit in the UT Cockrell School of Engineering.
Magruder received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California in aerospace engineering and her master’s degree from Princeton University in mechanical and aerospace engineering. Her Ph.D. was earned from The University of Texas at Austin with a focus on ground-based validation studies for NASA’s ICESat mission.
She has held positions at Jet Propulsion Laboratory and The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory prior to returning to UT Austin. After 9 years of Science Team leadership on the NASA ICESat-2 mission, that included both mission development and implementation guidance as well as the operational strategies for instrument pointing capabilities, Magruder has moved onto positions on other remote sensing science and instrument teams.
Magruder leads many other NASA research efforts in addition to supporting remote sensing programs through the Department of Defense with her expertise in geospatial topics and the unique link she brings between engineering and multi-disciplinary science applications. She also serves on the Central Texas Spaceport Development Corporation Board of Directors and as a member of the Texas Aerospace Research and Space Economy Consortium Executive Council.
