NASA Women's Lego Collection Launches Successfully

NASA Women's Lego Collection Launches Successfully

In a groundbreaking move, the Women of NASA LEGO set has been selected to become an official LEGO product, honouring pioneering women who made significant contributions to America’s space program.

The set, created by Maia Weinstock, deputy editor of MIT News, features five women who made historic contributions to the U.S. space program. These include astronaut Sally Ride, who became the first American woman in space in 1983, and Mae Jemison, who followed suit in 1992, becoming the first African-American woman in space.

The set also includes Margaret Hamilton, who led the development of software for the Apollo missions while at MIT, and Katherine Johnson, who is known for calculating and verifying trajectories for the Mercury and Apollo programs. Rounding out the set is astronomer Nancy Grace Roman, who was one of the first female executives at NASA and was instrumental in the planning of the Hubble Space Telescope.

Weinstock’s goal with the set is to get the public to recognize the history of women in the STEM fields and set an example for girls and boys to normalize women’s presence in these fields. The set fits into a broader movement recognizing women in science and technology, fitting LEGO’s initiative to promote diverse role models in STEM and preserve the legacies of these women whose work was crucial to NASA’s successes.

The Women of NASA set was created through LEGO Ideas, a platform where fan-submitted concepts can become official LEGO products. The set, priced at about $63–70, also comes with an early reader book to further engage children with the stories of these women.

In addition to the Women of NASA set, Weinstock has created a Lego set called "Women of MIT," featuring a diverse group of women from various fields, cultural backgrounds, ages, and including some known for their work in astronomy. Weinstock has also created Legos for numerous celebrated scientists and engineers, including Jane Goodall, Sylvia Earle, Stephen Hawking, Ernest Moniz, and Sangeeta Bhatia.

Sangeeta Bhatia, a John and Dorothy Wilson Professor at MIT, expressed excitement about being immortalized in Lego and hopes it encourages young tinkerers to consider engineering at MIT. The set is designed for ages 10 and up and is a testament to the power of play in inspiring future generations of girls in STEM fields.

References: [1] https://ideas.lego.com/project/32021 [2] https://www.cnn.com/2017/08/04/us/nasa-women-lego-set-trnd/index.html [4] https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferkho/2017/08/03/lego-nasa-women-set-inspires-girls-in-stem-fields/?sh=6a29b8e67382

1. Maia Weinstock, deputy editor of MIT News, has created a Lego set called "Women of MIT," featuring women from various fields in STEM.
2. The Women of NASA LEGO set, now an official product, honors five women who made significant contributions to America’s space program.
3. The Women of NASA set includes astronaut Sally Ride, who was the first American woman in space in 1983, and Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman in space in 1992.
4. Margaret Hamilton, who led the development of software for the Apollo missions while at MIT, and Katherine Johnson, who calculated and verified trajectories for the Mercury and Apollo programs, are also featured in the set.
5. Nancy Grace Roman, who was one of the first female executives at NASA and instrumental in the planning of the Hubble Space Telescope, is also included in the set.
6. Weinstock aims to get the public to recognize the history of women in the STEM fields and set an example for girls and boys to normalize women’s presence in these fields.
7. The Women of NASA set fits into a broader movement recognizing women in science and technology, aligning with LEGO’s initiative to promote diverse role models in STEM.
8. The Women of NASA set, priced at about $63–70, comes with an early reader book to further engage children with the stories of these women.
9. Sangeeta Bhatia, a John and Dorothy Wilson Professor at MIT, expressed excitement about being immortalized in Lego and hopes it encourages young tinkerers to consider engineering at MIT.
10. The Women of NASA set, created through LEGO Ideas, is a testament to the power of play in inspiring future generations of girls in the fields of science, health, and wellness, women’s health, space and astronomy, technology, education and self-development, and lifestyles.

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