Glady Mae West is an African American mathematician who is best known for her work at Seaasat, an experimental U.S. Ocean surveillance satellite. This satellite was designed to generate data on oceanographic conditions and features, such as wave height, currents, water temperature, winds, icebergs and coastal characteristics. This project demonstrated satellites were useful in observing oceanographic data.
West's work on Seastat lead to GEOSTAT. This satellite was programmed to produce computer models of Earth's surface. West and her team taught the computer how to account for gravity, tideas and other forces impacting the Earth's surface. They then created a program to precisely calculate the orbits of satellites. Those models, in turn, made it possible to detrmine an exact model for the shaope of earth. This model, along with subsequent updates, allows the GPS system to make accurate calculations of any place on Earth.
Born in Sutherland Virginia, West received her undergraduate and graduate training in Mathematics at Virginia State University. A life long learner and after recovering from a stroke, West completed her PhD in Public Administration at Virginia Polytechnic University at age 70 in 2000.
In 2018 West was formally recognized for her contribution to the development of GPS by the Virginia General Assembly. That same year she was also inducted into the Air Force Space and Missile Pioneers Hall of Fame and named one of the British Broadcasting Corporation’s 100 Women of 2018, a list designed to honor women in science worldwide.
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