Human Computers - The Women of NASA
The Forgotten Women Who Sent Men to Space—For Pennies
When we think of NASA’s greatest achievements, we picture towering rockets, historic Moon landings, and astronauts floating in zero gravity. Names like John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, and Buzz Aldrin dominate the history books. But behind every mission was an invisible army of mathematicians—brilliant women whose calculations were so crucial that one mistake could mean disaster.
They were called human computers, and they were responsible for the calculations that made space travel possible.
But despite their intelligence, expertise, and role in shaping the Space Race, they were paid next to nothing, faced constant discrimination, and were ultimately replaced by the very technology they helped develop.
So, who were these women? What did they actually do? And why has history nearly forgotten them?
NASA’s Human Computers: The Women Who Won the Space Race
In the 1960s, before digital computers became reliable, NASA needed precise, real-time mathematical calculations to send rockets into space. Early electronic computers were slow, prone to errors, and unable to be fully trusted with life-or-death mission data.
Instead, NASA turned to human computers—teams of women who manually performed complex calculations for spaceflight trajectories, re-entry angles, and orbital mechanics.
One of the most famous was Katherine Johnson, a mathematical prodigy whose calculations were so accurate that John Glenn refused to launch until she personally verified his numbers.
Let that sink in: an astronaut about to risk his life aboard a spacecraft trusted a human computer more than a machine.
These women worked under immense pressure, knowing that if they got a single decimal point wrong, it could mean the difference between a successful mission and a catastrophic failure. And yet, for all their contributions, they weren’t considered scientists, weren’t paid like professionals, and often weren’t even acknowledged for their work.
Their job was literally rocket science. But their paychecks? Barely above clerical wages.
NASA’s Best Minds, Paid Less Than Secretaries
For all the brilliance and precision required for their jobs, NASA’s human computers were classified as clerical workers, which meant they earned far less than their male engineering counterparts.
At the height of the Space Race, a human computer might have made $3,500 a year—about $35,000 in today’s money. Meanwhile, male aerospace engineers were earning nearly three times that amount.
Adding insult to injury, many of these women, particularly Black mathematicians like Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson, faced segregation within NASA. They had to work in separate offices, use separate restrooms, and were often barred from professional opportunities despite their undeniable expertise.
They endured all of this because they believed in the mission—but they would soon find themselves out of a job.
The Machines That Replaced Them
As digital computers advanced, NASA no longer needed human computers. The very same technology they had helped refine, troubleshoot, and validate was now taking over their jobs.
Some, like Dorothy Vaughan, foresaw the change and transitioned into computer programming, becoming some of the earliest female coders in the space program. Others were quietly pushed out, their contributions erased by time, their names left out of history.
NASA wouldn’t acknowledge their impact until decades later, when books like Hidden Figures and its film adaptation brought their names back into the public eye. But for most of them, the recognition came far too late.
How Bad Was It?
The truth is, NASA’s human computers were some of the most brilliant minds of their time, yet they were treated as disposable. They endured long hours, relentless stress, gender and racial discrimination, and insultingly low pay, all while performing calculations that sent men to space and back in one piece.
So just how bad was it? What did a day in their life look like? And what are the wildest, most unbelievable stories from their time at NASA?
Find out in the latest episode of History’s Worst Paychecks!
Listen now to uncover the jaw-dropping true story of NASA’s forgotten mathematicians, and learn how their work—though unappreciated in their time—changed the future of space exploration forever.
