Assistant Professor
About
Professor Peterson is a supernova cosmologist holding a dual appointment, Assistant Professor of Physics and Postdoctoral Research Fellow, at the University of Michigan through the Michigan Society of Fellows. He grew up in and around Tacoma, Washington, and earned his bachelor's degree in physics at Notre Dame in 2019. He defended his dissertation, focused on improving the supernova Hubble diagram, and earned his doctoral degree at Duke University in January 2025.
Professor Peterson's research primarily focuses on near-infrared supernova analysis (having run his own supernova survey (DEHVILS) as well as peculiar velocities (previously for the Pantheon+ analysis and for a galaxy-group targeted pilot program). In terms of teaching, before moving to Michigan, he taught two courses as the sole instructor, one at Duke University and another at Durham Technical Community College.
Looking to the future, Professor Peterson is part of supernova-specific teams for both the upcoming Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) and NASA's next flagship mission, the Roman Space Telescope, and will be contributing substantially to both projects in the coming years.
