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NASA’s ‘Hidden Figures’ honored with Congressional Gold Medal

The four trailblazing female African-American NASA mathematicians, engineers and researchers, well-known from the 2016 “Hidden Figures” book and movie, will be honored with congressional gold medals.

Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson and Dr. Christine Darden received the highest civilian award in the U.S. for their contributions to the space program when President Trump signed the “Hidden Figures Congressional Gold Medal Act” on Friday.

Virginia Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine introduced the legislation.

The scientists worked at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia in the late 1950s.

The 2016 book “Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped win the Space Race,” told the story of Johnson, Vaughan, Jackson and Darden and was later made into a film.

In a news release posted on Tim Kaine’s website, the senators said: “We are thrilled that these four trailblazers are being recognized with this honor. Their engineering and calculations were essential to our nation’s success in the Space Race, but for too long, they didn’t receive the acknowledgment they deserve.”

Trump announces a $22.5B makeover of Dulles airport that will eliminate the ‘people movers’

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a $22.5 billion renovation of Washington Dulles International Airport that will end the use of the widely disliked “people movers,” the mobile lounges that have been used for decades to shuttle travelers to and from the main terminal. In place of the people movers, the airport will add a new U-shaped passenger train, a central walking tunnel, more moving walkways and new concourses. An above-ground parking garage closer to the main terminal with space for 32,000 vehicles is also in the offing, according to Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. The airport makeover would add to a long list of renovation projects the Republican president is pursuing to leave a lasting mark on the Washington region after his term ends in January 2029. Among other undertakings, he is building a new White House ballroom and wants to build a towering triumphal arch near the Lincoln Memorial. But of all the construction projects Trump is pursuing, the renovations at Dulles could prove to be his most popular and benefit the greatest number of people. The airport, the area’s primary international airport, served roughly 29 million passengers over the past year, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.
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