During Black History Month, we salute to Lonnie Johnson, an American inventor, aerospace engineer, and entrepreneur. Johnson began his career in the US Air Force, followed by a twelve-year stint at NASA, where he worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. There he developed electrical devices and nuclear power energy systems for the Galileo spacecraft. He also participated in the design of the Stealth Bomber.
In 1982, everything changed. While working on a new kind of heat pump design for refrigerators, he tested out a valve in his bathroom sink. Water trickled into the valve, then spurted across the room, splattering against the wall. As he watched the water drip down the tub wall, Johnson immediately thought “water gun.” He built a prototype gun for his daughter, who showed it to her friends. They all loved it.