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Pioneer

Margaret Hamilton

Also Known As Margaret Elaine Heafield (maiden name)
Computing and Guidance Pioneers
Stack of Code Listing Sheets

An American computer scientist who led the team that developed the onboard flight software for NASA's Apollo program, work credited with popularizing the term "software engineering." Her software's error-handling design let Apollo 11's guidance computer prioritize critical tasks during a landing-sequence alarm, a decision widely credited with saving the mission.

Facts
Birth Date
1936-08-17 1
Birth Year
1936 2
Nationality
American 1
Defining Contribution
Led development of the Apollo Guidance Computer's onboard flight software 3
Notable Work
Led the team that developed the onboard flight software for the Apollo Guidance Computer 2
Connections

Associated With

Led development of the Apollo Guidance Computer's flight software.

Source A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo AstronautsAndrew Chaikin
Source NASA History Office
Sources
1. NASA History Office
National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationView the Source
2. Wikipedia: Margaret Hamilton (software engineer)
  • Margaret Hamilton, Wikipedia - infobox (born)
    August 17, 1936
  • Lead section
    Margaret Elaine Hamilton (née Heafield; born August 17, 1936) is an American computer scientist.
View the Source
3. A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts
Andrew Chaikin
Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Wikimedia FoundationMargaret Hamilton, Wikipedia - Apollo 11 landing section
Quote, Margaret Hamilton, Wikipedia - Apollo 11 landing section
The software's action, in this case, was to eliminate lower priority tasks and re-establish the more important ones
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