Margaret Hamilton, scientist who worked on NASA's Apollo program, dead at 90
Margaret Hamilton, a pioneering software engineer who led the development of the Apollo lunar program's computer systems, has passed away at age 90. MIT and NASA officials have honored her legacy as a foundational figure in modern software engineering.
Why it matters
Her work was instrumental in the success of the Apollo moon landings and established the field of software engineering as a critical discipline.
American scientist Margaret Hamilton, who led the development of the computer system used by NASA's Apollo lunar program me, has died at the age of 90, her former employer said Wednesday.
In a statement, the Massachussetts Institute of Technology called Hamilton, who taught at the prestigious university from 1959 to the mid-1970s, a "computing pioneer" and said she died on September 30.
"To say Margaret Hamilton was a pioneer — to say she was ahead of her time — would be a dramatic understatement," said Olivier de Weck, the Apollo Program Professor and interim head of the MIT Department Aeronautics and Astronautics.
"She was a software engineer at a time when that field was in its infancy, and she not only developed advanced code herself but also led a team in using that nascent technology to develop one of the most complex systems humanity had ever achieved," Weck added.
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