Showing results for "Katherine" in Cultural Heritage

Did you know that NASA uses mathematics for space travel? Meet Katherine Johnson, one of the first African-American and female mathematicians who worked for NASA. Learn about her life growing up in segregated America and her journey to pursue her education and dreams. Her mathematical calculations helped American astronauts to go to space, land on the moon, and return to earth safely in 1969!

Born into slavery, Rebecca Crumpler became the first Black female physician in America. Stuntwoman Bessie Coleman was the first Black person in the world to obtain a pilot's license. The work of Harlem Renaissance sculptor Selma Burke can be found on the American dime. The calculations of NASA mathematician Katherine Goble Johnson were critical to the success of US manned spaceflight. These Black women and many more overcame tremendous obstacles and prejudices to make their mark on American history.

Learn all about how a young Black girl who loved numbers grew into a brilliant mathematician who helped land the first person on the moon in this inspiring addition to the Who Was? series. From a very young age, Katherine Johnson counted everything—the number of dirty dishes she'd washed, the...