Joseph-Louis Lagrange
Awards & Honours
6
Awards Won
5
Honours
2
Rankings
3
Covers
3
Records
Lagrange's five Grand Prix wins from the French Academy of Sciences are a record few have matched, reflecting his dominance in celestial mechanics during the 1760s and 1770s. He is one of only 72 scientists whose names are engraved on the Eiffel Tower, a permanent honor in the heart of Paris. His burial in the Panthéon places him among France's most revered national heroes. The Lagrange points, named after him, have become essential for modern space exploration, with the James Webb Space Telescope operating at the L2 point. Historians of mathematics consistently rank him among the top ten mathematicians of all time, alongside Euler, Gauss, and Newton.
Awards
Honours & Distinctions
Burial in the Panthéon
One of France's highest honors, reserved for national heroes.
Name inscribed on the Eiffel Tower
One of 72 scientists whose names are engraved on the tower.
Lunar crater Lagrange
A crater on the Moon named in his honor.
Asteroid 1006 Lagrangea
An asteroid named after him.
Lagrange points named after him
Five points in orbital mechanics fundamental to space exploration.
Rankings & Lists
Greatest Mathematicians of All Time
72 Scientists on the Eiffel Tower
Magazine Covers
Scientific American
1994-09-01
Lagrangian Mechanics Today
Nature
2013-04-10
Lagrange's Legacy
TIME
2016-01-25
The Man Behind the Lagrange Points
Records & Feats
Five Grand Prizes from French Academy of Sciences
Won five Grand Prizes from the French Academy of Sciences, a record for the 18th century.
No diagrams in a mechanics masterpiece
Mécanique analytique contained not a single diagram, a unique approach for a mechanics text.
Youngest professor at Royal Artillery School
Appointed professor at age 19 after only two years of studying mathematics.