IN MEMORIAM: LINDA FRENCH (1951-2025)
Dr. Linda M. French, 74, astronomer, educator, colleague, and friend to many, died on November 9, 2025 in Exeter, NH.
Linda received her PhD (1980) in Astronomy from Cornell University. Involved in research on the shapes, spin states, and surface compositions of small Solar System bodies, she emphasized the properties of Trojan asteroids in an effort to understand their origins. From 2017-2019, she worked as Program Director, NSF Astronomical Sciences Division. Linda served as Education Officer (1993-1997), Secretary (2003-2006), and Education Advisory Board member (2008-2010) for the Division for Planetary Sciences, American Astronomical Society.
A dedicated educator, Linda taught astronomy, physics, and life sciences to students of all ages throughout her career. She spent the last two decades of her professional life as a professor at Illinois Wesleyan University, receiving the Kemp Foundation Award for Teaching Excellence in 2016. She also developed and taught a popular course on the music of the Beatles as part of IWU’s freshman writing program.
Linda made numerous trips to York, England, to research the life of 18th-century astronomer John Goodricke. She served on the AAS Historical Astronomy Division Committee (2012-2015).
In 1988, asteroid (3506) French was named in her honor; in 2020, she was named an AAS Legacy Fellow. Her full obituary and a tribute wall can be found here.
