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This article describes JWST's orbit around Lagrange point L2, suggesting a successful model based on force equations.
A recent Monthly article described Lagrange’s work in identifying the five “Lagrange points” in the sun-earth system, with a brief mention of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) mission. In this article, the characteristics of the JWST orbit around the Lagrange point L2 are developed from two very basic equations describing the forces acting on JWST. The resulting model of the orbit is compared with actual orbit data obtained from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
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Donald Teets (2026) studied this question.
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