astronomy

List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit

List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit rather than just read about it. In short: Below is a list of artificial objects currently in heliocentric orbit, but not intended to orbit or land on any planetary or satellite body. This list does not include upper stages from robotic missions (only the S-IVB upper stages from Apollo missions with astronauts are listed), objects in the Sun–Earth Lagrange points or objects that are escaping from the Solar System.

Key takeaways

List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Below is a list of artificial objects currently in heliocentric orbit, but not intended to orbit or land on any planetary or satellite body. This list does not include upper stages from robotic missions (only the S-IVB upper stages from Apollo missions with astronauts are listed), objects in the Sun–Earth Lagrange points or objects that are escaping from the Solar System.

United States The United States has placed in heliocentric orbit:

Pioneer 4 – Moon (1959) Ranger 3 – Moon (1962) Ranger 5 – Moon (1963) Mariner 2 – Venus (1962) Mariner 3 – Intended for Mars, communication lost when launch shroud failed to separate (1964) Mariner 4 – Mars (1964–1967) Mariner 5 – Venus (1967) Pioneer 5, Pioneer 6, Pioneer 7, Pioneer 8, and Pioneer 9 – Sun (1966–1969) S-IVB for Apollo 8 (1968) S-IVB for Apollo 9 (1969) S-IVB and LM Snoopy (ascent stage) for Apollo 10 (1969) S-IVB for Apollo 11 (1969) Mariner 6 and Mariner 7 – Mars (1969) S-IVB for Apollo 12 (1969) – temporarily recaptured in Earth orbit 2002, escaped again 2003 ICE – Comets Giocabinni-Zinner and Halley (1974–1987) Mariner 10 – Venus and Mercury (1974–1975) Mars Observer (1992) – Intended for Mars, failed prior to orbital insertion (1993) Protective cover of Cassini CDA instrument (1997) Stardust – Comet Wild 2 (1999–2006) Genesis – Solar wind sample mission (2001–2004) CONTOUR – Intended to flyby several comets, failed after launch (2002), seen as three separate fragments Spitzer Space Telescope (2003–2020) Deep Impact – Comet Tempel 1 STEREO-A and STEREO-B (2006–2016) Kepler Mission (2009–2018) TAGSAM head cover – jettisoned from OSIRIS-REx (2018) MarCO-A and MarCO-B – CubeSat relays for InSight (2018–2019) Parker Solar Probe (2018–present) Lucy, various orbits between Earth gravity-assists and Jupiter's Trojans (2021–present) LICIACube (ASI) – CubeSat flyby of Didymos system (2021–2022) CubeSat for Solar Particles, intended to study Sun, but contact was lost in an hour (2022) Team Miles, intended to test technologies, but contact never established (2022) BioSentinel (2022–present) Near-Earth Asteroid Scout, was intended to conduct an asteroid flyby, but contact never established (2022) On Apollos 8 and 10–17, each S-IVB upper stage jettisoned four sections of a truncated conical adapter that supported the Apollo service module and (except for Apollo 8) enclosed the Apollo Lunar Module. These panels are in heliocentric orbit, including those from Apollos 13–17 whose S-IVBs impacted the Moon, as the S-IVBs jettisoned them before maneuvering themselves into lunar impact trajectories. The panels continued on lunar flyby trajectories into heliocentric orbit. (The adapter panels on Apollo 9 were jettisoned in Earth orbit before the S-IVB burned into an Earth escape trajectory. They eventually decayed.) U.S.-based commercial spaceflight companies have placed in heliocentric orbit:

Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster with Falcon Heavy second stage (2018) Odin (Brokkr-2); flyby of 2022 OB5, but failed due to communication and tumbling issues (2025) Blue Origin launched NASA's ESCAPADE satellites with New Glenn second stage going into heliocentric orbit.

Soviet Union or Russian Federation The Soviet Union or the Russian Federation has placed in heliocentric orbit:

Luna 1 – Intended to crash on Moon (1959) Venera 1 – Intended for Venus, communication lost en route (1961) Mars 1 – Intended for Mars, communication lost en route (1962) Zond 2 – Intended for Mars, communication lost en route (1964) Luna 6 – Intended to land on Moon, but missed (1965) Zond 3 – Moon (far side) and interplanetary space (1965) Venera 2 – Venus (1966) Mars 4 – Intended to orbit Mars, but retrorocket failed, mission partial success (1974) Mars 6 coast stage – Mars (1974) Mars 7 coast stage – Mars (1974) Mars 7 lander – Intended to land on Mars, but missed planet (1974) Venera 11 cruise stage – Venus (1978) Venera 12 cruise stage – Venus (1978) Venera 13 cruise stage – Venus (1982) Venera 14 cruise stage – Venus (1982) Vega 1 – Venus and Halley's Comet (1984–1986) Vega 2 – Venus and Halley's Comet (1984–1986) Phobos 1 – Intended for Mars and moon Phobos, communication lost en route (1988)

European Space Agency (ESA) The European Space Agency has placed in heliocentric orbit:

Helios 1 (joint U.S./Germany) – Sun (1975–1985), launched on a US Titan III Helios 2 (joint U.S./Germany) – Sun (1976–1979) Giotto mission – Halley's Comet (1985–1992) Ulysses (joint U.S./ESA) – Jupiter and Sun's north and south poles (1990–2009) Gaia mission (2013-2025)

Japan Japan has placed in heliocentric orbit:

Sakigake – Halley's Comet (1985–1999) Suisei – Halley's Comet (1985–1991) Nozomi – Intended for Mars, but retrorocket failed (1998–2003) MINERVA mini-lander – Intended for asteroid Itokawa but missed (2005) IKAROS – Venus flyby DCAM1 and DCAM2 – Ejected from IKAROS (2010) SHIN-EN – failed mission to Venus SHIN-EN 2 – amateur radio satellite, material demonstration (possibly active) ARTSAT2:DESPATCH – Deep space artwork (2014)

China China has placed in heliocentric orbit:

Chang'e 2 – asteroid 4179 Toutatis flyby

See also List of extraterrestrial orbiters List of artificial objects leaving the Solar System Human presence in space List of objects at Lagrange points

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit

In research: List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Lists of artificial objects sent into space, Lists of satellites, Orbiters (space probe), so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit in simple terms?

Why does List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit.