NASA Administrator Bill Nelson launched his remarks as gotten ready for Wednesday’s Hidden Figures Congressional Gold Medal event in Washington. The awards acknowledged the females who added to the area race, consisting of the NASA mathematicians who assisted land the very first astronauts on the Moon under the firm’s Apollo Program.
“Good afternoon.
“The impressive things that NASA attains … which America accomplishes … develop on the leaders who came before us.
“People like the females of Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo.
“People like Mary Jackson. Dr. Christine Darden. Dorothy Vaughan. Katherine Johnson.
“Thanks to all the Members of Congress who made today possible. The late Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, who we miss out on, and who led the effort in 2019 together with Senator Chris Coons to bring these medals to life. Thanks to the champs for the legislation, then-Senator Kamala Harris, Senators Lisa Murkowski and Shelley Moore Capito, and Congressman Frank Lucas.
“The ladies we honor today made it possible for Earthlings to raise beyond the bounds of Earth, and for generations of trendsetters to follow.
“We did not come this far just to come this far.
“We continue this tradition, as one member of the audience here with us does every day– the exceptional Andrea Mosie.
“Andrea, who has actually operated at NASA for almost 50 years, is the lead processor for the Apollo sample program. She manages the Moon rocks and lunar samples NASA revived from Apollo, 842 pounds of celestial science! These samples are nationwide treasures. Is Andrea.
“The leaders we honor today, these Hidden Figures– their guts and creativity brought us to the Moon. And their lessons, their tradition, will send us back to the Moon … and after that … think of– simply envision– when we leave our footprints on the red sands of Mars.
“Thanks to these individuals who belong to our NASA household, we will continue to cruise on the cosmic sea to away cosmic coasts.”
To learn more about NASA objectives, check out:
-end-
Meira Bernstein/ Cheryl Warner
Head office, Washington
202-358-1600
meira.b.bernstein@nasa.gov/ cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov