I am a tenured Professor of Astronomy at the University of Maryland in College Park. I joined the Department of Astronomy in August 2000. Born in Canada, I became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2008. I have a B.Sc. in Physics and Astronomy from the University of British Columbia (1990) and a Ph.D. in Astrophysics from the University of Cambridge (1993). My first postdoctoral position was at the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics in Toronto (1993 to 1996). I then spent 3 years as a postdoc in the Astronomy Department at the University of Washington in Seattle, followed by 1 year there as a Research Assistant Professor before moving to Maryland. In July 2025, I plan to retire and become Professor Emeritus.
My research interests include computational astrophysics, planet formation, planetary ring dynamics, asteroid evolution, and granular dynamics. As a theorist, I'm a faculty member of our department's Center for Theory and Computation. I am also the contact person for the scientific cooperation agreement with Côte d'Azur Observatory. I was the Dynamics Working Group lead in support of the DART mission, part of the AIDA collaboration.
In addition to my research and teaching duties, I provide service functions to the department and university. Currently I am Chair of the Learning Technology Working Group and a Member of the DIT HPCC Allocations Advisory Committee.
My latest curriculum vitae (CV) is available here (long format, PDF). It is updated periodically.
In 2002, Asteroid 12566 Derichardson was named in my honor, which is totally cool.
My hobbies include birding and gaming.
