Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

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July 21, 2026

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Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly is a book that highlights the crucial contributions of African American women mathematicians to the U.S. space program, particularly at NASA, during the 1960s. The narrative focuses on three key figures: Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson.1

These women faced significant challenges due to racism and sexism, including racial segregation and a lack of recognition for their work. Despite these obstacles, their achievements were monumental. Katherine Johnson's calculations were vital for John Glenn's orbit, Dorothy Vaughan became NASA's first African American supervisor, and Mary Jackson became NASA's first African American female engineer. Their work was instrumental in the success of the U.S. space race.1

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- Hidden Figures
  …published in the same year: Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race. Both the book and the film tell the story of the “human computers” who, in the time before digital computation, manually performed the complex calculations…
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  …published in the same year: Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race. Both the book and the film tell the story of the “human computers” who, in the time before digital computation, manually performed the complex calculations…
  Read More