Valerie Thomas

Valerie Thomas (born May 1943) is an African-American scientist and inventor. She invented the illusion transmitter, for which she received a patent in 1980.

Early life and education
Thomas was interested in science as a child, learning at the age of 8 about electronics after reading The Boys First Book on Electronics. She wanted her father to help her work on projects involving electronics, but he did not. She attended an all-girls school where she did not receive any training in the sciences. Implicit stereotypes contributed to this, as the girls' school did not offer instruction in math or science, so she had to educate herself about those subjects. Thomas would go on to attend Morgan State University, where she was one of two women in majoring in physics.

Career
In 1964, Thomas began working for NASA as a data analyst and eventually oversaw the creation of the Landsat program. In 1976, she attended an exhibition that included an illusion of a light bulb that was lit, even though it had been removed from its socket. The illusion, which involved another light bulb and concave mirrors, inspired Thomas. Curious about how light and concave mirrors could be used in her work at NASA, she began her research in 1977. This involved creating an experiment in which she observed how the position of a concave mirror would affect the real object that it reflected. Using this technology, she would invent the illusion transmitter.

On October 21, 1980, she obtained the patent for the illusion transmitter, a device that NASA continues to use today. While at NASA, she worked as project manager for the Space Physics Analysis Network and was associate chief for NASA's Space Science Data Operations Office. She also participated in projects related to Halley's Comet, ozone research, and the Voyager spacecraft. She retired in August 1995 as Space Science Data Operations Officer, serving as manager of the NASA Automated Systems Incident Response Capability and as chair of the SSDOO Education Committee.

She is currently an associate at the UMBC Center for Multicore Hybrid Productivity Research. She also serves as a mentor for youth through the Science Mathematics Aerospace Research and Technology and National Technical Association.

Awards

 * Goddard Space Flight Center Award of Merit
 * NASA Equal Opportunity Medal