Before John Glenn orbited the earth or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as "human computers" used pencils, slide rules and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space. Among these problem-solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation. Originally relegated to teaching math in...

Biography of NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson. Shares the story of the pioneering African American mathematician, Katherine Johnson, who helped calculate America's first manned flight into space, its first manned orbit of Earth, and the world's first trip to the moon.

"You just boarded a flight to New York. There are one hundred and forty-three other passengers onboard. What you don't know is that thirty minutes before the flight your pilot's family was kidnapped. For his family to live, everyone on your plane must die. The only way the family will survive is if the pilot follows his orders and crashes the plane. Enjoy the flight." --

Otto the robot builds a spaceship to take him home.

Between the world wars, no sport was more popular, or more dangerous, than airplane racing. Thousands of fans flocked to multi-day events, and cities vied with one another to host them. The pilots themselves were hailed as dashing heroes who cheerfully stared death in the face. Well, the men were hailed. Female pilots were more often ridiculed than praised for what the press portrayed as silly efforts to horn in on a manly, and deadly, pursuit. Keith...

"Maisy is off on a journey to see her friend Ella, but Ella lives such a long way away. Maisy must go by plane and what an exciting trip it is! As she makes her way through security and steps on board, Maisy peeks in at the captain: what a lot of lights and buttons it takes to make a plane go! Maisy soon makes friends with Mr. Percy and Betsy; and after drinks, magazines and a tricky toilet stop, the journey is over in no time!"--OCLC.

Presents a history of the most famous secret military installation in the world, assembled from interviews with the people who served there and formerly classified information.

As the fiftieth anniversary of the first lunar landing approaches, the award winning historian and perennial New York Times bestselling author takes a fresh look at the space program, President John F. Kennedy's inspiring challenge, and America's race to the moon. On May 25, 1961, JFK made an astonishing announcement: his goal of putting a man on the moon by the end of the decade. In this engrossing, fast-paced epic, Douglas Brinkley returns to the...

A simple explanation of how space rockets work, where they travel, and what they do.

In 1978, Sally Ride, a Ph.D. candidate at Stanford University, responded to a newspaper ad to join the U.S. astronaut program. She was accepted and, in 1983, became the first American woman astronaut to fly in space. Illustrations.