Lagrangian point

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noun Astronomy.

one of five points in the orbital plane of two bodies orbiting about their common center of gravity at which another body of small mass can be in equilibrium.

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Origin of Lagrangian point

1960–65; named after J. L. Lagrange; see -ian

Words nearby Lagrangian point

La Grange, La Grange Park, Lagrange's method, Lagrange's theorem, Lagrangian function, Lagrangian point, La Granja, lag screw, Lagting, La Guaira, La Guardia

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Lagrangian point in a sentence

The citizens of Stevens Point defeated fluoridation by a healthy margin.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
Deep, situational, and emotional jokes based on what is relevant and has a POINT!
Trolls and Martyrdom: Je Ne Suis Pas Charlie|Arthur Chu|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
To borrow an old right-wing talking point, these people are angry no matter what we do.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Therefore, it is not possible for any F-35 schedule to include a video data link or infrared pointer at this point.
Pentagon Misfires in Stealth Jet Scandal|Dave Majumdar|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST

But the most important point I want to make is about what the press does now.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Our Duty Is to Keep Charlie Hebdo Alive|Ayaan Hirsi Ali|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This is the first and principal point at which we can stanch the wastage of teaching energy that now goes on.
The Salvaging Of Civilisation|H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
His also was the intellectual point of view, and the intellectual interest in knowledge and its deductions.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume II of II)|Henry Osborn Taylor
Judged from this point of view only, the elasticity provided by the new law is doubtless adequate.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
That is the only point in which one sees Liszt's sense of his own greatness; otherwise his manner is remarkably unassuming.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
When we speak against one capital vice, we ought to speak against its opposite; the middle betwixt both is the point for virtue.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou

British Dictionary definitions for Lagrangian point

Lagrangian point

noun

astronomy one of five points in the plane of revolution of two bodies in orbit around their common centre of gravity, at which a third body of negligible mass can remain in equilibrium with respect to the other two bodies

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for Lagrangian point

Lagrangian point

[ lə-grān′jē-ən ]

A point in space where a small body with negligible mass under the gravitational influence of two large bodies will remain at rest relative to the larger ones. In a system consisting of two large bodies (such as the Sun-Earth system or the Moon-Earth system), there are five Lagrangian points (L1 through L5). Knowledge of these points is useful in deciding where to position orbiting bodies.