NASA’s Katherine Johnson passes away at 101
Katherine Johnson, a mathematician at NASA who played a key role in the success of American crewed flights passed away on February 24, 2020 at the age of 101. NASA Administrator James Bridenstine is quoted saying, “Our NASA family is sad to learn the news that Katherine Johnson passed away this morning at 101 years old. She was an American hero and her pioneering legacy will never be forgotten.”
In her 35 years serving NASA, Johnson was most famously known for her work on complex orbital mechanics - specifically on NASA astronaut John Glenn’s mission. 1962 formed the key moment in Johnson’s career when she was asked to double-check calculations for Glenn’s mission. The complexity of the mission required worldwide networks to perfectly coordinate with each other, and the computers were programmed with various orbital equations that would determine the crewed spacecraft’s trajectory. While these computers were up and running, they were also prone to blackouts at the time. The crew did not want to put their lives in the hands of a computer and specifically requested Johnson to take a look at the numbers before giving the flight a go ahead. Upon Johnson’s approval, the mission was carried out and was a success, thus bringing Johnson to the limelight. This moment also formed an important turning point in the competition between the United States and Soviet Union in the space race.
In addition to her career accomplishments, Johnson was also excellent in academics. She came to be known as the first African American to attend graduate school in West Virginia, and continually topped her math courses before accepting a job offer from National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). There, she worked as a mathematician to read and understand data from black boxes.
Working in an environment dominated by males and although referred to as “computer wearing skirts”, she was fearless in breaking social and racial barriers, inspiring many other women to pursue their career in the fields of aeronautics and astronomy.
RIP Katherine!
