Katherine Johnson was an African-American mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics as a NASA employee were critical to the success of the first and subsequent U.S. crewed spaceflights. She was born on August 26, 1918, in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, and passed away on February 24, 2020.
During her 35-year career at NASA and its predecessor, she earned a reputation for mastering complex manual calculations and helped pioneer the use of computers to perform the tasks. The space agency noted her “historical role as one of the first African-American women to work as a NASA scientist.”
Katherine Johnson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015 by President Barack Obama for her contributions to the space program. Her story, along with those of fellow NASA mathematicians Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson, was depicted in the 2016 film “Hidden Figures.”
Some key aspects of her life and career include:
- Johnson was exceptionally talented in mathematics from a young age.
- She attended West Virginia State College, graduating summa cum laude in 1937 with degrees in Mathematics and French.
- She worked at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), which later became NASA, working on problems related to flight tests and investigating a plane crash.
- Johnson’s work was crucial in calculating the trajectory for Alan Shepard’s 1961 flight, which was the first American human spaceflight.
- She was also involved in calculations for the 1969 Apollo 11 flight to the moon.
Katherine Johnson broke barriers both as a woman and an African American, proving vital to the progress of the U.S. space program, and her legacy continues to inspire many around the world.
