Born in Harlowton, Montana, A.J. Eggenberger was only the second chairman in the 20-year history of the Defense Nuclear Facilites Safety Board, having succeeded the board’s original chairman, John Conway, in July 2005. From 1972 to 1984, he worked in the private sector with D'Appolonia Consulting Engineers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he was an associate partner in charge of the Nuclear Facilities Group that dealt with engineering issues ranging from mining, milling, fabrication, and reprocessing to disposal facilities in the U.S. and abroad. He then served at the National Science Foundation as program director and leader of the Earthquake Hazard Mitigation Program until he was appointed vice chairman of the DNFSB in 1989.