Dorothy Vaughan was an African American mathematician and computer scientist who made significant contributions to the United States’ aeronautics and space programs with her work at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and later at NASA. She was born on September 20, 1910, in Kansas City, Missouri, and passed away on November 10, 2008.
Vaughan was a part of the West Area Computing Unit at the Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. This group, comprised predominantly of African American women mathematicians, was tasked with complex manual calculations that were pivotal for the success of the U.S. space program. They played a crucial role in helping the U.S. catch up to the Soviet Union during the early years of the space race. Dorothy Vaughan was notably the first African American woman to supervise a group of staff at the center, and she was known for her leadership and advocacy for women in STEM fields.
Despite facing both gender and racial discrimination, Vaughan and her team provided vital support to engineers and were integral to several successful space missions. Their story was largely overlooked until recently, with the 2016 book “Hidden Figures” by Margot Lee Shetterly and the subsequent film adaptation bringing deserved attention to their contributions. Vaughan, along with colleagues like Mary Jackson and Katherine Johnson, has since been celebrated for breaking barriers and paving the way for women and people of color in science and technology fields.
