Margaret Hamilton, who led a software team for NASA’s Apollo program, dies at 90

Margaret Hamilton, a pioneering computer scientist who led the team that developed the onboard flight software for NASA's moon-bound Apollo program, has passed away at the age of 90. Hamilton died on September 30 at a hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, according to her daughter Lauren Hamilton. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman praised Hamilton's work on X, stating that it was instrumental in making humanity's first moon journeys possible.

Olivier de Weck, an MIT professor and interim head of its aeronautics and astronautics department, described Hamilton as a software engineer who was far ahead of her time when the field was still in its infancy. She developed advanced code herself and led a team in utilizing nascent technology to create one of the most complex systems humanity had ever achieved.

Hamilton's contributions were recognized in recent years with a photo circulating online of her smiling in her early 30s next to a massive stack of pages containing the codes her team used during the Apollo project. A Lego set celebrating the women of NASA, unveiled in 2017, also featured a figure of Hamilton. Hamilton graduated with a degree in mathematics from Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, in 1958 and began working for MIT in 1959.

Initially, she worked on software for uncrewed missions before leading the team that developed the onboard flight software for crewed missions, serving as an assistant director in charge of the command and service module team by 1968. Hamilton expressed her feelings in 2009, stating that her team approached their work with seriousness and innovation, bringing solutions and new ideas as pioneers.

Her dedication led to her receiving numerous awards and accolades, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016 from President Barack Obama.