Neil Armstrong may have been the first man on the Moon but behind his historic steps were a group of women with the job title of ‘Computer’. A fantastic and long overdue movie called ‘Hidden Figures’ tells the story of trailblazing NASA mathematicians Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughn (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe). These women were responsible for calculating the trajectory for Neil Armstrong’s 1969 Apollo 11 flight to the Moon and Apollo 13 among others. Katherine Johnson was critical to the Apollo 13 mission and relied upon to help safely return the astronauts to Earth through her work on backup procedures. 97-Year-Old Katherine Johnson was recently awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civilian honor, for a hugely influential career in mathematics. The struggles and triumphs of Katherine and her colleagues are highlighted in this brilliant must-see movie due to be released in January 2017!
Watch the trailer here: