Street outside NASA’s DC office renamed for ‘Hidden Figures’

The Associated Press

5 years ago

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, left, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, second from left, D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, third from left, and Margot Lee Shetterly, author of the book "Hidden Figures," right, unveil the "Hidden Figures Way" street sign at a dedication ceremony, Wednesday, June 12, 2019 at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC. The 300 block of E Street SW in front of the NASA Headquarters building was designated as "Hidden Figures Way" to honor Katherine Johnson, Dorthy Vaughan, Mary Jackson and all women who have dedicated their lives to honorably serving their country, advancing equality, and contributing to the space program of the United States. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The street outside of NASA’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., has been renamed “Hidden Figures Way” to honor the black female mathematicians who helped send humans to the moon.

News outlets report district officials, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and others gathered Wednesday to unveil the new street sign.

“Hidden Figures” author Margot Lee Shetterly and the families of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson also attended the event. Shetterly’s 2016 book details the struggles of the women as they crunched numbers at the NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, in the pre-computer age.

Cruz in August proposed renaming E Street SW through the Hidden Figures Way Designation Act, which passed in December.