I remember it like it was yesterday. Everyone was so nervous. John Glenn and his crew would be the first American Astronauts to
orbit the Earth, and it was up to me to make sure they were safe. The computer was supposed to calculate the numbers. I was supposed to be watching the launch in my living room with the rest of the country, but not everything goes as planned. The computers were new, and not everybody, especially Mr. Glenn trusted them. I got the call to check the numbers right before the launch. I was honored, but terrified that Mr. Glenn asked for me personally. The country, although they didn't know it, was counting on me. I took a deep breath and did the work I did every day. I computed the numbers. Luckily, the numbers matched and with my assurance John Glenn and his crew launched up into space. The rest was history.
Passage B—Kathryn Johnson's story took too many years to be told. Very few people realize that her genius can be thanked for modern space exploration. In fact, John Glenn refused to launch his historic 1962 orbital mission without her telling him it was safe. The computer was just invented, and it was the first time it was used to calculate something so important. Before the computer, the math was done by NASA employees, many of them women. John Glenn trusted Katherine before any computer. Even when everyone else assured him that the math was correct and he would be safe, he refused to put himself and his men in danger without Katherine checking the work. Because of her, and many of the hidden figures like her, the United States began to lead the space race.
