The Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility is located in the West Virginia native's home state.
"Hidden Figures" mathematician Katherine Johnson played a critical role in NASA's early space program — now, the space agency is honoring her contributions by renaming a NASA software facility after her! The Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility , located in Johnson's home state of West Virginia, is the home of NASA's IV&V Program, which is dedicated to "contributing to the safety and success of NASA’s highest-profile missions" by improving the software used for a variety of space launches and flights. "I am thrilled we are honoring Katherine Johnson in this way as she is a true American icon who overcame incredible obstacles and inspired so many," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in an announcement. "It’s a fitting tribute to name the facility that carries on her legacy of mission-critical computations in her honor."
Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13During her 35-year career at NASA, during which she was forced to overcome both gender and racial barriers, Johnson's skills in celestial navigation were renowned. She calculated — by hand — the flight trajectories for a number of historic missions, including the Alan Shepard's space voyage aboard Freedom 7 in 1961 and the Apollo 11 flight to the Moon in 1969.
Over the past few years, Johnson’s contributions to America’s space program have become more widely known to the public thanks to President Barack Obama's presenting her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015 and the release of the book Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race in 2016. Since then, her story has been turned into a critically-acclaimed live action film and in both picture book and pre-teen young reader adaptations, and Johnson herself has been featured in a picture book and an early chapter book. By renaming the NASA IV&V Facility in her honor, IV&V Program Director Gregory Blaney explains that "it’s a way for us to recognize Katherine’s career and contributions not just during Black History Month, but every day, every year."
The IV&V Program has been involved in approximately 100 projects since it was created 25 years ago, including the Space Shuttle Program, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the InSight Mars Lander, as well as ongoing projects such as the James Webb Space Telescope, the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, and providing support for NASA's Commercial Crew Program. Johnson has already had a building at the Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia dedicated to her, but to have her name on the IV&V Facility, which is devoted to the safety of NASA's missions, is particularly fitting: "Everybody was concerned about them getting there," Johnson said about her work on the history-making Apollo 11 moon mission. "We were concerned about getting them back."
Books & Resources About Katherine Johnson
A Computer Called Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Helped Put America On The Moon
A Computer Called Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Helped Put America On The Moon
Katherine Johnson was a whiz with numbers, and she knew that just like 5+5=12 is wrong, so was the idea that women could only be teachers or nurses. She proved that girls and African Americans could be as smart as anyone else, zooming ahead of her school classmates and attending college at fifteen. But it wasn't until NASA hired her as a "computer" that she was able to prove that a woman like her could be a mathematician too — and once she did, her calculations helped take America into space, into orbit, and all the way to the moon! This uplifting biography celebrates a STEM pioneer, and includes back matter with inspiring quotes from Johnson herself.
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race
When Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden joined NASA, they were hired as "human computers" — their mathematical genius was put to use calculating launch trajectories for America's first trips to space. They overcame both racism and sexism, carved out careers in science, and participated in some of NASA's greatest triumphs. Fans of the Hidden Figures movie will be excited to share this picture book adaptation of the story of these groundbreaking women mathematicians with younger readers!
Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13
Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13
Katherine Johnson loved to count, and despite the prejudices against both women and African Americans, she was determined to find a way to make her love of math into a career. As one of NASA's "human computers," Johnson hand calculated elaborate equations... including the trajectories that helped launch the Apollo 13 mission to the moon. And when disaster befell the Apollo 13 mission, it was Johnson's flight-path calculations that brought the astronauts safely home. This inspiring biography of the mathematician catapulted to fame by Hidden Figures celebrates a love of math and encourages kids to follow their passions.
You Should Meet: Katherine Johnson
You Should Meet: Katherine Johnson
She's been called one of the greatest American minds of all time, and when NASA first started using computers to calculate launch trajectories, they only trusted them after she double-checked the math! Katherine Johnson broke both gender and racial boundaries when she started working for NASA in the 1950s as a human computer, performing the complex calculations necessary to launch rockets, satellites, and eventually, the Apollo 11 moon mission. New chapter book readers who are fans of the hit movie Hidden Figures will be excited to read their very own book about Johnson.
Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
Throughout American history, there were bold, daring Black women who broke all expectations and boundaries to make the world a better place! In this engaging picture book, author/illustrator Vashti Harrison introduces young readers to forty trailblazing women, including abolitionist Sojourner Truth, pilot Bessie Coleman, chemist Alice Ball, politician Shirley Chisholm, mathematician Katherine Johnson, poet Maya Angelou, and filmmaker Julie Dash. This inspiring book, filled with stunning full-page illustrations of each of the featured women, reminds young readers that every great leader began as a little leader, taking their first steps towards something big. Fans of Harrison's work can check out the sequel, Little Dreamers: Visionary Women Around The World, or the Leaders and Dreamers box set, which includes both books. Younger readers can also enjoy the board book Dream Big, Little One for ages 2 to 5.
Galaxy Girls: 50 Amazing Stories of Women in Space
Galaxy Girls: 50 Amazing Stories of Women in Space
This gorgeously illustrated collected biography honors inspirational women who helped fuel some of the greatest achievements in space exploration from the nineteenth century to today! Galaxy Girls pays tribute to fifty pioneering women past and present, from mathematicians to engineers to test pilots to astronauts, including Katherine Johnson. Each capsule biography is paired with a striking full-page original artwork from the students of the London College of Communication. Perfect for inspiring the space leaders of tomorrow, this stunning book gives this band of heroic sisters and their remarkable and often little known scientific achievements long overdue recognition.
Hidden Women: The African-American Mathematicians of NASA Who Helped America Win the Space Race
Hidden Women: The African-American Mathematicians of NASA Who Helped America Win the Space Race
In the early days of the space program, segregation was still the law, and most people thought that girls didn't belong in science. But at NASA, female African-American mathematicians challenged both gender and racial barriers: these "human computers" calculated the launch trajectories for America's rockets and satellites, and eventually, even for the first crewed space flights. In this narrative nonfiction book, young readers learn about these dedicated women, and then get a look at how women working at NASA today feel about their place in the space agency.
Hidden Figures Young Readers' Edition
Hidden Figures Young Readers' Edition
Before people could orbit the Earth or fly to the moon, there was a group of "human computers": dedicated female mathematician who used pencil and slide rule to calculate how to launch rockets. Four African-American women, Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden, were critical to the story of space flight — and yet their story was largely untold. In this young readers edition of Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, tweens will learn how these women, so little appreciated in their time, changed both NASA and America for the better.
Women in Science
50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World
Women in Science
50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World
This charmingly illustrated and educational book highlights the contributions of fifty notable women to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics from the ancient to the modern world. Full of striking, singular art, this fascinating collection profiles well-known figures like primatologist Jane Goodall, as well as lesser-known pioneers such as Katherine Johnson, the African-American physicist and mathematician who calculated the trajectory of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission to the moon. Women in Science celebrates the achievements of the intrepid women who have paved the way for the next generation of female engineers, biologists, mathematicians, doctors, astronauts, physicists, and more!
Hidden Figures
The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race
Hidden Figures
The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race
When America set its sights on the moon, launch calculations had to be done by pencils and slide rules in the hands of "human computers" — and among them was a group of incredibly gifted African-American women, without whom space travel would have stayed a dream. This book follows the stories of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Christine Darden, whose contributions have until recently been largely neglected in the history books but whose work not only helped humankind reach the moon, but also changed the history of black woman in science. This inspiring book, which kicked off a new cultural appreciation for these groundbreaking women, is a must-read title for anyone interested in women's history.
My Remarkable Journey: A Memoir
My Remarkable Journey: A Memoir
From a child prodigy and "daddy's girl" growing up in West Virginia, to NASA's "human computers," to the international stage as the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Katherine Johnson's life has been a journey that few could have predicted. Now, in this posthumously published memoir for adult readers, she shares both her own story and the values that drove her through her entire life — particularly the belief that education is paramount. Johnson pays homage to her family, her mentor, and to the determination of her fellow trailblazing women who changed the world, both for themselves and for the generations that followed. Warm and wise, this is an inspiring look at the life of a brilliant woman who made history.
Hidden Figures
Hidden Figures
This blockbuster film adaptation of the story of NASA's "computers" highlights the social changes going on during the 1950s and 60s, while celebrating the daring women who made those changes happen! Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, and Katherine Johnson were black women mathematicians hired to perform the endless calculations necessary for NASA's research and launches. They crossed gender and racial lines — and in many cases, pushed back against exclusionary policies — in order to help America reach outer space... and even still, few people knew their names until a couple of years ago. This inspiring story, based on the book Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, brings Vaughan, Jackson, and Johnson's story to vivid life on screen.
Women in Science - Katherine Johnson Poster
Women in Science - Katherine Johnson Poster
From Rachel Ignotofsky, the author/illustrator behind the exquisite book Women in Science, comes this high-quality print featuring Katherine Johnson! This poster pays tribute to Johnson's work as a physicist and NASA mathematician, and includes intriguing facts about this trailblazing scientist. This poster is available in 8X10, 11X14, and 16X20 inch sizes and is printed with archival quality inks.
