Trojans of Earth

Trojan asteroids are asteroids that orbit in the same orbit as a planet, but 60 degrees ahead of or behind the planet. Jupiter has perhaps hundreds or thousands of Trojans. Mars has some. Until this year, however, no Trojans of Earth had been found.

That has changed. The asteroid 2010 TK7 has been confirmed as an Earth Trojan. It's a body about a thousand feet across, and leads Earth through space. Actually, this particular little world has a complex orbit that is also extremely inclined to Earth's path, but for all its gyrations 2010 TK7 maintain the relative position to Earth that classifies it as a Trojan.

Finding more Earth Trojans, in simpler orbits, would be a real boon. Such bodies, in terms of energy requirements, would be easier to reach than the Moon. If NASA wants to send humans to an asteroid as a precursor of missions to Mars, therefore, going to an Earth Trojan might be the ideal choice. Trojans could also contain huge amounts of useful and valuable natural resources. Given that, coupled with their energy proximity, Earth Trojans could easily become home to the first human bases beyond the Moon. Of course, first we'll have to find more of them.