BREAKING: Legendary NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson dies at 101
Katherine Johnson, the legendary NASA mathematician who helped pave the way for the first American astronaut to successfully orbit the Earth and inspired the film Hidden Figures, has died aged 101.
NASA confirmed Johnson’s passing in a tweet on Monday morning.
‘Today, we celebrate her 101 years of life and honor her legacy of excellence that broke down racial and social barriers,’ the tweet read.
NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine praised Johnson as ‘an American hero’ whose ‘pioneering legacy will never be forgotten’.
Katherine Johnson, the NASA mathematician who helped pave the way for the first American astronaut to successfully orbit the Earth, has died aged 101
Johnson was one of three African American women who helped America dominate aeronautics, space research, and computer technology during World War II.
The story of how she, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson prepared astronaut John Glenn’s 1962 orbital mission as the US beat the Soviet Union (USSR) in the Space Race was told in the 2016 movie Hidden Figures.
The Oscar-nominated film also depicts the women’s simultaneous struggle against sexism and racism during a time of segregation.
Johnson, Vaughan and Jackson received Congressional Gold Medals, the highest civilian honor, in December after the ‘Hidden Figures Congressional Gold Medal Act’ was signed into agreement.
President Barack Obama presented Johnson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015.
This is a developing story.