Linda Ham - Aftermath of Columbia Investigation

Aftermath of Columbia Investigation

On July 3, 2003, NASA's new shuttle program manager, William Parsons, reassigned three senior engineers who had been involved in the Columbia disaster, including Linda Ham. NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe took the opportunity to praise Ham publicly, saying that the reassignment was "no reflection, in my judgment, on the competence or diligence or commitment or professionalism of anybody...." According to the Washington Post, "O'Keefe said she is so talented there is going to be a 'bidding war' for her among NASA facilities."

Ham's new position was as assistant to Frank Benz, director of engineering at the Johnson Space Center. However, she stayed in the job for less than six months. Her marriage to Kenneth Ham also ended in divorce during this same period. In December 2003, she took a temporary position from NASA at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, where she worked on federal plans for the storage and distribution of hydrogen fuel.

Linda Ham returned to the Johnson Space Center where she recently held the job as technical director for the Constellation Program Office where she was involved in the major decisions involving the Ares, Orion and Altair vehicles.

She has two children with former husband, astronaut Kenneth Ham (who later married Michelle Lucas of Hobart, Indiana).