More than half a century after NASA launched astronauts into space, you’d think all the stories about these groundbreaking missions had been told.

But they hadn't.

Margot Lee Shetterly's father worked at NASA, and the stories of the women of NASA were commonplace among the local community, but the world was yet to know the incredible true story of the African-American female mathematicians, and how integral their work was to the space race.

Lee Shetterly's book, Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race, was optioned for a film even before she finished writing it, and told the stories of four African-American women.

1. Katherine Johnson (1918-2020)
2. Dorothy Vaughan (1910-2008)
3. Mary Jackson (1921-2005)
4. Christine Darden (1942- )

While only three of those women's experiences made it into the movie, the story (while containing a few embellishments) is a remarkable one of hard work, grit and determination, set against the backdrop of racially and gender segregated America.

Episode originally released on 13th April 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

From the Archive

There's no new episode this week, so I thought you might be interested in revisiting this slightly older, but no less brilliant episode. Just bear in mind, this episode is several years old, it may not sound quite as polished as newer episodes, and new information may have come to light in recent years with regards to the making of this movie (please see above for the original date of release)