Dr. L. Dale Thomas

Propulsion Research Center Deputy Director DIRECTOR, ASGC & CSIL Eminent Scholar in Systems Engineering PROFESSOR, ISEEM

Contact

5000 Technology Drive NW
Olin B. King Technology Hall
Room N151
Huntsville, AL 35899
Campus Map

256.824.4243
Dale.thomas@uah.edu

Biography

UAH Alumnus (1988) Dr. L. Dale Thomas joined ISEEM in Fall 2015 as a full professor and was Board-appointed as the Eminent Scholar in Systems Engineering. Within a year, he established the UAH Complex Systems Integration Laboratory (CSIL), UAH's advanced systems engineering research facility focusing on Model-Based Systems Engineering. Among several projects, the lab is assisting the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) with cube satellites to be deployed during the first Space Launch System in 2019. In July 2017, he was appointed as the Deputy Director of the UAH Propulsion Research Center (PRC). In that role, he leads the Propulsion Systems Engineering research team and engages in strategic planning activities.

In July 2017, Dr. Thomas was appointed Director of the Alabama Space Grant Consortium, the congress-created body that implements a portfolio of programs in research, education and public service projects in science and engineering. Dr. Thomas' core objective in assuming the role is to strengthen ties between academic researchers and industry.

Dr. Thomas brings 32 years of NASA experience to his current work on campus. He worked as an aerospace systems engineer on projects based at MSFC in Huntsville and Johnson Space Center in Houston, including the Space Station Freedom Project, the International Space Station Program, the NASA Space Launch Initiative, and the Constellation Program. In 2011 he was appointed MSFC's Associate Center Director, a role he maintained until his 2015 retirement from NASA. He serves as the Director of Alabama NASA EPSCoR (Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research) Program.

Dr. Thomas has authored numerous technical papers and chapters in two textbooks, and served as an editor for the systems engineering textbook Applied Systems Engineering. He travels nationwide presenting elements of his research on models based systems engineering. Alongside other colleagues in UAH College of Engineering, Dr. Thomas served as a conference co-chair of the 14th Conference on Systems Engineering Research hosted by UAH in March 2016.

Curriculum Vitae

Education

  • Ph.D. in Systems Engineering-Computer Engineering | Mathematics, The University of Alabama in Huntsville, AL, 1988
  • M.S. in Industrial Engineering-Electronic Engineering, North Carolina State University, NC, 1983
  • B.S.E. in Industrial & Systems Engineering, The University of Alabama in Huntsville, AL, 1981

Honors & Awards

  • Joint Army Navy NASA Air Force (JANNAF) Interagency Propulsion Committee Sustained Contribution Award (June 2015)
  • Presidential Rank of Meritorious Executive (October 2014)
  • NASA Medal for Outstanding Leadership (August 2012, June 2000)
  • NASA Exceptional Service Medal (June 2007)
  • NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal (June 2002)
  • UAH Distinguished Engineering Alumni Academy (May 2002)
  • Who’s Who in America (2002)
  • Who’s Who in Science and Engineering (2000, 2001)
  • NASA Silver Snoopy Award (February 1999)
  • NASA Space Station Chester A. Vaughan Engineering Excellence Award (1996)

Affiliations

  • Associate Fellow – American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
  • Senior Member – International Council on Systems Engineering
  • Senior Member – Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
  • Member – American Nuclear Society
  • Member – American Astronomical Society

Expertise

  • Model Based Systems Engineering
  • Systems Integration
  • Systems Science

Recent Publications

  • D. Thomas, M. Houts, D. Wang, K. Hollingsworth, R. Frederick, & J. Cassibry, “Centrifugal Nuclear Thermal Rocket Engineering Challenges and Research Progress,” Acta Astronautica. September 2026. DOI: 10.1016/j.actaastro.2026.07.066

  • S. Lakshmipuram Raghu, D. McDowell, J. Schneider, & D. Thomas, “Analytical Framework for Assessment of Fatigue Life in Additive Manufacturing based Superalloys for Propulsion Applications and its Implementation in a Model-based Environment,” Journal of Space Safety Engineering. DOI: 10.1016/j.jsse.2026.05.009

  • A. Ghossein, C. Mueller, J. Mulloy, A. Maldonado, & D. Thomas, “Analysis of NERVA Engine Performance using Point Kinetics-Based Power Balance Modeling,” Nuclear Engineering and Design, 446(Part A), 114574, January 2026. DOI: 10.1016/j.nucengdes.2025.114574