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Obituary
Gladys West, mathematician whose work paved the way for GPS, dies at 95
Gladys West went from a one-room schoolhouse in rural Virginia to college and to working on planetary motions and modeling. "I really did like geometry," she said of her high school years. "I fell in love with that."
Courtesy of the West family
She navigated segregation to become an esteemed mathematician — and today, her work helps billions of people navigate the world.
Gladys West, whose pioneering career contributed key elements to what became the GPS satellite system and was later acknowledged as a "hidden figure" of GPS, died Saturday at age 95.
Could you live without GPS? It's OK, the economy can't, either
West "passed peacefully alongside her family and friends and is now in heaven with her loved ones," her family said as they announced her death.
West is credited with astounding accomplishments in mathematics, playing pivotal roles in charting orbital trajectories and creating accurate mathematical models of the Earth's shape that would eventually be used by the GPS satellite orbit.
But, as West admitted to member station VPM in 2020, she did not really rely on the groundbreaking system she helped create.
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"I would say minimal," she replied when asked if she used GPS. "I prefer maps."
'A commitment to be the best I could be'
Born Gladys Mae Brown in 1930, West grew up in the Jim Crow Era, on a small farm in Dinwiddie County, Va., south of Richmond. She attended a one-room schoolhouse with one teacher, and in her memoir, It Began with a Dream, West wrote of the aspirations that grew during those early years.
Putting Dr West on the Map
Robyn Donaldson, founder of STEM Xposure, had the honor of meeting Dr. Gladys West and her husband during STEM camps. She vividly recalls how Dr. West, moved by the curiosity of the young minds from around the world, posed a heartfelt question: "Can you help me get my book into the hands of young brown boys and girls?" That simple yet powerful request sparked the birth of this campaign—a mission to inspire the next generation.
While many are familiar with the film Hidden Figures, Dr. West’s groundbreaking contributions were not included. This campaign is dedicated to changing that by ensuring her story, It Began With a Dream, reaches schools across the globe, especially in underrepresented communities.
