gravity assist

American  

noun

1. the technique of using the energy of a gravitational field and the orbital velocity of a planet to change the speed and trajectory of a spacecraft.

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Example Sentences

It will get a gravity assist by sling-shotting around Mars early next year, then boomerang back around Earth in late 2026 before zooming toward the gas giant and its icy, dynamic moon.

From Los Angeles Times

Astronauts journeying a billion and a half miles to one of Saturn’s moons, Titan, will need a whip-around gravity assist — the “slingshot” in question — from Jupiter’s orbital velocity in order to make it all the way.

From Los Angeles Times

After skimming the inner edge of the main asteroid belt, Lucy heads back toward Earth for a gravity assist in December 2024.

From Science Daily

After leaving Dinky, the probe will head back to Earth for a gravity assist maneuver in December 2024.

From Scientific American

It will skim the inner edge of the main asteroid belt before looping back toward Earth for a gravity assist that will fling it out toward the Trojans.

From Los Angeles Times