ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) has successfully completed a world-first lunar-Earth flyby, using the gravity of Earth to send it Venus-bound, on a shortcut to Jupiter through the inner Solar System.
I love how counter intuitive orbital mechanics are. Speed it up a little as it passes the Moon, then earth slowing it down to get to Venus to accelerate it out to jupiter faster is some outside the box thinking.
I love how counter intuitive orbital mechanics are. Speed it up a little as it passes the Moon, then earth slowing it down to get to Venus to accelerate it out to jupiter faster is some outside the box thinking.
It really is weird stuff. Kerbal Space Program is a great way to experience that counterintuitiveness (is that a word?).
counterintuivootion
Absolutely. Kerbal is an excellent way to learn orbital mechanics. I think they even have an educational version.