Katherine Johnson, NASA mathematician andHidden Figuresinspiration, dies at 101
But her most famous contribution to NASA came in 1962, during John Glenns spaceflight. NASA computers had been programmed with calculations, but Glenn didnt trust the machines. He asked the engineers to have Johnson double-check the equations. Eddy Chen/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images If she says theyre good, then Im ready to go, Johnson recalled Glenn saying. She did, and he was. Her children were there, and her grandchildren....