thruster

American  

[thruhs-ter] / ˈθrʌs tər /

noun

1. a person or thing that thrusts.

2. Fox Hunting. a rider who keeps in the front of the field.

3. Aerospace. a small rocket attached to a spacecraft and used to control its attitude or translational motion.

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thruster British  

/ ˈθrʌstə /

noun

1. a person or thing that thrusts

2. Also called: vernier rocket.  a small rocket engine, esp one used to correct the altitude or course of a spacecraft

3. an auxiliary propeller on a ship, capable of acting athwartships

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Etymology

Origin of thruster

First recorded in 1590–1600; thrust + -er ¹

Example Sentences

The flight quickly went off course because of helium leaks in the vehicle’s propulsion system and the temporary failure of five thrusters that maneuver the craft.

From The Wall Street Journal

Equipped with lights, cameras, thrusters, and other cutting-edge high-tech devices, the Exosuit represents a major breakthrough in marine archaeology.

From Literature

The quick and dirty alternative would be to “point the thing down and fire the thruster, which would basically produce an instantaneous reentry.”

From Los Angeles Times

The first challenge was to dock safely and successfully at the ISS, which they managed to do within several minutes after Mission Control on the ground helped them restart the craft's thrusters.

From BBC

This included issues with some of Starliner's thrusters, which would be needed to slow the spacecraft for re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, and leaks of helium gas in the propulsion system.

From BBC