NASA spacecraft gains 3.5 km/s speed from Earth’s gravity assist without major engine burn

JUICE captures images of Earth during its flybyPhoto: ESA.int ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer, known as Juice, used Earth’s gravity as a cosmic slingshot on September 28, 2026, reshaping its route to Jupiter while conserving precious fuel. Flying just 8,640 km above the Indian Ocean, the spacecraft had its trajectory deflected by 20 degrees and its speed increased by 3.5 km/s, all without a major engine burn. According to ESA and ScienceDaily, mission controllers needed only one small course correction in the four weeks before the encounter to keep Juice on the precise path needed for the gravity assist.A carefully planned close approachJuice’s closest approach came at 13:45 CEST, or 11:45 UTC, on September 28. At that moment, the spacecraft passed 8,640 km above the Indian Ocean, skimming the very outer edge of Earth’s atmosphere. The manoeuvre was designed to bend Juice’s path by 20 degrees and add 3.5 km/s to its velocity, setting it on a better course toward Jupiter, as per the reports.ESA had scheduled six opportunities for tiny trajectory corrections in the weeks leading up to the flyby, including windows at four weeks, two weeks, one week and three days before closest appro...