Lego's Women of NASA set rockets into reality
Some of NASA's brightest minds star in a Lego set with four women scientists, the Hubble Space Telescope and a space shuttle in plastic-brick form.
From writing critical Apollo software to planning the Hubble Space Telescope, women have made their mark on NASA and expanded our understanding of the universe. A new Lego Ideas Women of NASA set will highlight four of these pioneering scientists and their work with minifigure versions.
Lego fan Maia Weinstock, a science writer and editor, created the concept for the set and received the backing of 10,000 supporters through the Lego Ideas projects site. Lego announced in February it would put the set into production.
The finalized set, revealed Wednesday, features 231 pieces, including minifigures depicting astronomer Nancy Grace Roman, computer scientist Margaret Hamilton, astronaut/physicist Sally Ride and astronaut/engineer Mae Jemison, all of whom made huge contributions to NASA and the advancement of space exploration.
The set also comes with a posable Hubble Space Telescope, a mini Space Shuttle Challenger (with removable rocket stages), a launchpad and a stack of books representing Hamilton's Apollo Guidance Computer onboard flight software source code.
The Women of NASA collection takes its cues from Weinstock's original designs but refines the ideas with more detailed models.
Weinstock's vision included mathematician Katherine Johnson, whose story was depicted in the 2016 movie "Hidden Figures." A Lego spokeswoman says the company was not able to obtain approval from Johnson for the production minifigure set.
The Lego Ideas Women of NASA set is available globally starting on Nov. 1 for $24.99 through the Lego Shop. UK and Australia pricing is not yet available.
Apollo software engineer Margaret Hamilton looks at a minifig version of herself.
