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Date: February 25, 2020 08:41AM
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/langley/computational-facility-named-in-tribute-to-nasa-langley-math-master-katherine-johnsonA smiling Katherine Johnson returned Thursday to the NASA center where, for decades, she used her mathematical smarts to help shape history.
This time she was in the spotlight, not behind a desk making complex calculations and searching for the truth in numbers.
Katherine Johnson smiles during May 5, 2016, ceremony.
Katherine Johnson worked at NASA's Langley Research Center from 1953 to 1986. Since her retirement, she's been a strong advocate for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.
Credits: NASA/David C. Bowman
The mathematician and 97-year-old Newport News resident visited NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, to attend a ceremony where a $30 million, 40,000-square-foot Computational Research Facility was named in her honor.
As part of the event, Johnson also received a Silver Snoopy award from Leland Melvin, an astronaut and former NASA associate administrator for education. Often called the astronaut’s award, the Silver Snoopy goes to people who have made outstanding contributions to flight safety and mission success.
“I do thank you so much for your attention, for your kindness, but more than that, I’m so happy to see you giving more recognition to women for the work that they have done,” Johnson said. “I have always done my best … At the time it was just another day’s work.”
Johnson needn’t have been modest. She’s a Presidential Medal of Freedom winner whose sharp mind gave NASA an edge in mankind’s quest to explore space.
She first made her mark at a time when women and African-Americans were regularly marginalized.
Working at Langley from 1953 until her retirement in 1986, Johnson made a long list of critical contributions. She calculated the trajectory of the 1961 flight of Alan Shepard, the first American in space. Thursday’s ceremony was held on the 55th anniversary of that historic flight.
Johnson is also credited for verifying the calculations made by early electronic computers of John Glenn’s 1962 launch to orbit and the 1969 Apollo 11 trajectory to the moon.
The Katherine G. Johnson Computational Research Facility is currently under construction.
The Katherine G. Johnson Computational Research Facility currently under construction will allow NASA Langley to replace and consolidate a number of aging data centers and will enhance the center's computational strength.
Credits: NASA
Margot Lee Shetterly, author of a forthcoming book about Johnson and other women whose calculations were integral to America’s space program, gave the keynote address at Thursday’s event.
Her book, “Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped NASA and the United States Win the Space Race,” is scheduled to be published in September by William Morrow.
Shetterly noted that Johnson eagerly credits others who share her passion for what’s now called STEM, short for science, technology, engineering and math.