WOMEN IN HISTORY - KATHERINE JOHNSON
American Mathematician, NASA Pioneer and Educator
DATE OF BIRTH
August 26, 1918
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PLACE OF BIRTH
White Sulphur Springs, WV
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DATE OF DEATHFebruary 24, 2020
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PLACE OF DEATH
Newport News, VA
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FAMILY BACKGROUND
Katherine was the youngest of four children born to Joylette Roberta (née Lowe) and Joshua McKinley Coleman.
In 1939, Johnson married James Francis Goble, with whom she had three daughters: Joylette, Katherine and Constance. He died of cancer in 1956. She remarried in 1959 to James A. "Jim" Johnson, a United States Army officer and veteran of the Korean War; the pair were married for 60 years until his death in March 2019 at the age of 93.
In 1939, Johnson married James Francis Goble, with whom she had three daughters: Joylette, Katherine and Constance. He died of cancer in 1956. She remarried in 1959 to James A. "Jim" Johnson, a United States Army officer and veteran of the Korean War; the pair were married for 60 years until his death in March 2019 at the age of 93.
EDUCATION
B.S., Mathematics and French, West Virginia State College, 1937
Hired by NACA: June 1953. Retired from NASA: 1986
Hired by NACA: June 1953. Retired from NASA: 1986
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Katherine Johnson (née Creola Katherine Coleman) was a NASA mathematician (“Human Computer”) who played a key role in several NASA missions during the Space Race, including calculating the trajectories needed for the Mercury missions of astronauts Alan Shepard and John Glenn, and getting the Apollo 11 and 13 missions to the moon and back. She also
As a black woman working for NASA in the 1950s and '60s, Johnson overcame social boundaries and racial discrimination. She was the only woman member of the Space Task Group. In 1960 she coauthored a paper with one of the group’s engineers about calculations for placing a spacecraft into orbit. It was the first time a woman in her division received credit as an author of a research report. Johnson authored or coauthored 26 research reports during her career. She later helped to develop the space shuttle program and Earth resources satellite.
Her impressive career was the subject of the 2016 book and movie "Hidden Figures," by Margot Lee Shetterly.
As a black woman working for NASA in the 1950s and '60s, Johnson overcame social boundaries and racial discrimination. She was the only woman member of the Space Task Group. In 1960 she coauthored a paper with one of the group’s engineers about calculations for placing a spacecraft into orbit. It was the first time a woman in her division received credit as an author of a research report. Johnson authored or coauthored 26 research reports during her career. She later helped to develop the space shuttle program and Earth resources satellite.
Her impressive career was the subject of the 2016 book and movie "Hidden Figures," by Margot Lee Shetterly.
HONORS AND AWARDS
- 1967 NASA Lunar Orbiter Spacecraft and Operations team award
- National Technical Association’s designation as its 1997 Mathematician of the Year
- Honorary degrees from SUNY Farmingdale, Maryland's Capitol College, Virginia's Old Dominion University and West Virginia University.
- In November 2015, President Barack Obama presented Johnson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
- In 2016, she was presented with the Silver Snoopy Award by NASA astronaut Leland D. Melvin and a NASA Group Achievement Award
- In 2016, the NASA Langley facility at which Johnson worked renamed a building in her honor.
- West Virginia State University dedicated a scholarship and unveiled a statue on Saturday, Aug. 25, 2018, honoring her.
- In 2019, Johnson was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress.
- In 2021, she was inducted posthumously into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- Johnson, K., Hylick, J., Moore, K. (2021). My Remarkable Journey: A Memoir. United States: HarperCollins.
- Johnson, Katherine (2019). Reaching for the Moon: The Autobiography of NASA Mathematician Katherine Johnson. United States: Simon & Schuster.
- Shetterly, M. L. (2016). Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race. United States: HarperCollins.
- Paul, R., & Moss, S. (2015). We Could Not Fail: The First African Americans in the Space Program. University of Texas Press.
WEBSITES
QUOTE
“Like what you do, and then you will do your best.” ~ Katherine Johnson
“Girls are capable of doing everything men are capable of doing. Sometimes they have more imaginations than men.” ~ Katherine Johnson
“If you want to know you ask a question. There’s no such thing as a dumb question, its’ dumb if you don’t ask it.” ~ Katherine Johnson
“Girls are capable of doing everything men are capable of doing. Sometimes they have more imaginations than men.” ~ Katherine Johnson
“If you want to know you ask a question. There’s no such thing as a dumb question, its’ dumb if you don’t ask it.” ~ Katherine Johnson
CITATION
This page may be cited as:
Women in History. Katherine Johnson biography. Last Updated: 9/29/2024. Women In History Ohio.
<http://www.womeninhistoryohio.com/katherine-johnson.html>
Women in History. Katherine Johnson biography. Last Updated: 9/29/2024. Women In History Ohio.
<http://www.womeninhistoryohio.com/katherine-johnson.html>