Space Engineer and Scientist Margaret Hamilton (STEM Trailblazer Bios)

Have you ever watched video of astronauts walking on the moon? Margaret Hamilton programmed software that helped get them there. As a girl, Hamilton loved math and science. She grew up during a time when very few women studied computer science, but Hamilton knew she wanted to write code. As an adult, she worked on NASA's Apollo program, creating computer programs to guide spacecraft to and from the moon. This included the 1969 Apollo 11 mission―the first spaceflight that landed humans on the moon. In 2016, Hamilton was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her work. Learn how Hamilton's passion for math and computers played a key role in space exploration.

"A celebration of innovators and the various STEM fields they pioneered and loved. Throughout the series, the authors routinely but gently emphasize how interconnected the acts of studying, inventing, and playing are (especially in Lonnie Johnson)―a quality that makes these titles natural companion texts for maker spaces. Also, the initial focus on the childhood of each subject allows students to draw their own personal connections (a young Nikola Tesla unsuccessfully tried to fly, Ellen Ochoa's parents divorced when she was a teen). Bright, well-designed layouts make for an effortless reading experience, though the text can be vague at points; for instance, in Katherine Johnson, students may wonder why her town 'did not have a high school she could attend.' Upbeat profiles of admirable STEM figures and fine additions to biography collections."―School Library Journal