List of objects at Lagrangian points
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This is a list of known objects which have been, are or are planned to occupy any of the five Lagrangian points of two-body systems in space.
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L1 is the Lagrangian point located approximately 1,500,000 km towards the Sun away from the Earth.
- International Cometary Explorer, formerly the International Sun-Earth Explorer 3 (ISEE-3), diverted out of L1 in 1983 for a comet rendezvous mission. Currently in solar orbit, it may be captured in 2014 when it next approaches Earth.
- Genesis, which returned to Earth in September 2004 after collecting solar wind particles for three years. The sample return capsule crash-landed in Tooele County, Utah, when its parachute failed, making its planned airplane-grab recovery impossible. Usable samples were recovered from the capsule anyway, making the mission a partial success.
- WIND, a NASA spacecraft, was launched in November of 1994 in order to study solar wind. The spacecraft's original mission was to orbit the Sun at the L1 Lagrangian point, but this was changed when the SOHO spacecraft was sent to the same location.
- The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO)
- The Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE)
- The Triana satellite, designed to monitor global warming
L2 is the Lagrangian point located approximately 1,500,000 km away from the Earth in the direction opposite the Sun.
- The joint NASA, ESA and CSA James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), formerly known as the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST)
- The ESA Herschel Space Observatory
- The ESA Planck Surveyor
- The ESA Gaia probe
- The NASA Terrestrial Planet Finder mission (may be placed in an Earth-trailing orbit instead)
- The ESA Darwin mission
- The ESA Eddington space telescope
L3 is the Lagrangian point located on the side of the Sun opposite the Earth, slightly outside the Earth's orbit.
- There are no known objects in this orbital location.
L4 is the Lagrangian point located close to the Earth's orbit 60° ahead of the Earth.
- Dust clouds
L5 is the Lagrangian point located close to the Earth's orbit 60° behind the Earth.
- Dust clouds
- future location of TDRS-derived satellites to facilitate direct communications between Earth and far side of the Moon.
- possible Kordylewski clouds
- possible Kordylewski clouds
- future location of TDRS-style communication satellites to support L2 satellite
Asteroids in the L4 and L5 Mars-Sun Lagrangian points are sometimes called Mars Trojan asteroids, but "Trojan asteroid", as originally defined, is a term for asteroids in the L4 and L5 Jupiter-Sun Lagrangian points.
- 1999 UJ7
- 5261 Eureka
- 1998 VF31, 2001 DH47, 2001 FG24, 2001 FR127 (not confirmed as true Lagrangian asteroids)
Asteroids in the L4 and L5 Jupiter-Sun Lagrangian points are known as Jupiter Trojan asteroids or simply Trojan asteroids.
Asteroids in the L4 and L5 Neptune-Sun Lagrangian points are sometimes called Neptune Trojan asteroids, but "Trojan asteroid", as originally defined, is a term for asteroids in the L4 and L5 Jupiter-Sun Lagrangian points.
Source: Minor Planet Center [2]