‘Hidden Figures’ mathematician dies. Here are 5 things to know about Katherine Johnson

Katherine Johnson, a NASA mathematician depicted in the film “Hidden Figures,” has died at age 101, NASA announced on Monday.

Here are five things to know about the extraordinary life of this trailblazing woman who was a key player in helping American astronauts reach space and orbit the Earth.

1. She made history in West Virginia schools

West Virginia integrated its schools in 1939 and Katherine, a West Virginia native, was one of three black students — and the only girl — chosen to attend West Virginia University, according to her NASA biography.

She had graduated with her bachelor’s degree in mathematics and French from West Virginia State College with highest honors two years earlier.

Katherine had been teaching at a black public school in Virginia when she got the offer from WVU and left her job to enroll in the graduate math program. She ultimately left the program to start a family with her husband James Goble.

2. She did analysis for America’s first human space flight

In 1952, Katherine joined the all-black West Area Computing section of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, where she was quickly assigned to a project in the Maneuver Loads Branch of the Flight Research Division, according to NASA.

When NACA became NASA following the launch of Sputnik, she did trajectory analysis on the Alan Shepherd-manned Freedom 7 mission— America’s first human spaceflight in 1961, NASA reported.

3. She helped John Glenn orbit Earth

As the astronauts of the 1962 Friendship 7 mission began preparing for their attempt to orbit Earth, John Glenn specifically asked that NASA “get the girl” to help with the complexities of orbital flight, NASA reported.

Computers had been programmed with the equations that would control the trajectory of the capsule, but astronauts were wary of their reliability.

So Katherine ran all of the equations by hand. John Glenn would orbit the Earth three times before returning safely back to the ground.

Katherine remembered Glenn saying, “If she says they’re good, then I’m ready to go,” according to NASA.

4. She was played by Taraji P. Henson in the movie “Hidden Figures”

“Hidden Figures” was released in 2017 and followed the story of Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson and Katherine Johnson; the three black women who helped John Glenn orbit Earth.

The film starred Taraji P. Henson, who played Katherine, along with Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae. It was nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay, as well as a Best Supporting Actress nod for Octavia Spencer.

5. She wanted the story to be about women, not her

Katherine attended a special screening of “Hidden Figures” in 2016 and while she’s not been quoted speaking about the movie, Margot Lee Shetterly — the author of the book upon which the movie is based — told Bustle that Katherine wanted the story to be about women, not just her.

“Katherine Johnson’s request,” Shetterly told the outlet, “was not for her but all the women who worked at NASA be represented. She didn’t want this to be just about one person.”

In an interview with the Greensboro News and Record, Katherine’s daughter, Katherine Moore, echoed the sentiments.

“We say it’s not about Mama so much as it’s about women,” Moore said. “It’s about the gender gap and how they overcame during those horrible years.”

She added that her mom was humble and generous with knowledge.

“She’s so humble, and although things seemed to have come easy to her, she always wanted everybody else to know everything she knew,” Moore told the newspaper. “So she was always a helping person. She always tutored. She never charged kids.”

This story was originally published February 24, 2020 at 11:23 AM.