# @nasa on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp0JRONu1WZ
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/4793774-nasa-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/117841772f.jpg
- **Posted:** 2023-03-15T15:34:08.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** NASA (@NASA) — https://gondola.cc/NASA

## Caption

From hidden figures to modern figures. ⁣
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NASA’s early achievements in air and space would not have been possible without the Black women who worked in the “West Area Computing” unit at nasa_langley between 1943 through 1958 (back when NASA was NACA — the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics). The West Computers group overcame discrimination and contributed to virtually every area of research at Langley.⁣
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Some of these notable women include Katherine Johnson, Mary W. Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughn.⁣
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Mathematician Katherine Johnson performed the trajectory analysis for Alan Shepard’s Freedom 7 mission in 1961, America’s first human spaceflight. Astronaut John Glenn specifically asked for Johnson to check the trajectory of his orbital flight in 1962: “If she says they’re good, then I’m ready to go.” Johnson also worked on calculations for Apollo, space shuttle, and Landsat missions.⁣
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Aeronautical engineer Mary W. Jackson became NASA’s first Black woman engineer in 1958. Jackson authored or co-authored a dozen or so research reports during her engineering career, and then focused her efforts on championing women's rights in the workplace.⁣
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Mathematician Dorothy Vaughan became NACA’s first Black supervisor in 1949 when she was promoted to lead the West Computers. After the West Computers transitioned to the racially and gender-integrated Analysis and Computation Division in 1958, Vaughan became an expert FORTRAN programmer and contributed to the Scout Launch Vehicle Program.⁣
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NMAAHC will feature an exhibition entitled “Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures” starting on March 24.⁣
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Image descriptions: ⁣
1. Katherine Johnson is photographed at her desk in 1966. She smiles at the camera wearing glasses and a button-up dress. Credit: NASA⁣
2. Mary W. Jackson is photographed with a model airplane. She is wearing glasses and a badge is clipped to the bottom of her shirt. Credit: NASA⁣
3. Dorothy Vaughan is photographed smiling at the camera. Her hair is tied in a bun. Credit: Courtesy Vaughan Family⁣
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#NASA #HiddenFigures #NMAAHCFutures #WomensHistoryMonth⁣

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## Tags

nasa, hiddenfigures, nmaahcfutures, womenshistorymonth

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