An 80-year-old woman who wrote software for the Apollo space missions has been given the United States' highest civilian honour, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Margaret Hamilton was one of 21 people awarded the medal by President Barack Obama in a star-studded ceremony. It is almost 50 years since her initial work on the Apollo 11 moon mission. <br/><br/>Mrs Hamilton's pioneering software helped land the lunar module and its crew on the Moon in 1969. Other notable medal recipients at yesterday's ceremony at the White House included comedian and talkshow host Ellen DeGeneres, actor Tom Hanks and musicians Diana Ross and Bruce Springsteen.<br/><br/>President Obama said Mrs Hamilton symbolises that generation of unsung women who helped send humankind into space.