Margaret Hamilton, a foundational figure in the field of software engineering, has died. Hamilton is best known for leading the Software Engineering Division of the MIT Instrumentation Laboratory, which developed the onboard flight software for NASA's Apollo space program. Her team's work was critical to the success of the Apollo missions, including the 1969 moon landing, as the software was designed to prioritize essential tasks and prevent system crashes during critical phases of flight.

Hamilton is widely credited with coining the term "software engineering" to give the discipline the same level of legitimacy as hardware and systems engineering. Her contributions were not widely recognized by the general public until later in her career, when she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016 for her role in the Apollo program. Beyond her work with NASA, Hamilton went on to found and lead several software companies, continuing to influence the development of robust, error-free systems. Her legacy remains a cornerstone of modern computing, particularly in the development of mission-critical software where reliability is paramount.