NASA dedicates facility to mathematician Katherine Johnson

Jim Sharkey

The Katherine G. Johnson Computational Research Facility at NASA’s Langley Research Center. Image Credit: NASA

NASA has commemorated the many contributions of retired mathematician Katherine Johnson during a building dedication ceremony on Thursday, May 5, at the space agency’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The event took place on the 55th anniversary of Alan Shepard’s historic spaceflight aboard Freedom 7 in 1961, which Johnson helped make possible.Johnson, now 97, worked at Langley from 1953 until her retirement in 1986. She began her career as a research mathematician, part of a pool of women hired to perform mathematical calculations by hand for engineers. After quickly distinguishing herself, she was permanently assigned to the branch that calculated the launch windows for the first Project Mercury flights.

Notable accomplishments during Johnson’s 33-year career include her computation, by hand, of the launch window and trajectory for Shepard’s flight, and verification, by hand, of computer calculations for John Glenn’s orbit around the Earth in 1962. She also calculated the trajectory for the Apollo 11 Moon landing. In 2015, she received the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Hundreds of people turned out for Thursday’s naming ceremony at NASA Langley. The keynote address was delivered by Margot Lee Shetterly, author of the book Hidden Figures, which chronicles the many achievements of Johnson’s NASA career, as well as those of other African-American NASA mathematicians.

During the ceremony, NASA officials also presented Johnson with a Space Flight Awareness Silver Snoopy Award. The Silver Snoopy goes to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to human spaceflight safety.

The Katherine G. Johnson Computational Research Facility is scheduled to open in 2017. The 40,000-square-foot building will provide a consolidated data center and high-density office space. It is the third building in NASA Langley’s 20-year revitalization plan.

Video courtesy of NASA