// ORBITAL LOGISTICS AND PROPULSION TERM
Gravity Assist
A gravity assist is a technique where a spacecraft uses the gravitational pull and orbital motion of a planet to change its speed and direction, saving fuel and time.
TECHNICAL DEFINITION
A gravity assist (or planetary swing-by) is an orbital maneuver where a spacecraft exploits the gravitational field and relative motion of a celestial body to alter its velocity vector (speed and/or direction) relative to the Sun, conserving propellant and enabling deep-space missions.
BACKGROUND
Private spaceflight companies include non-governmental or privately owned entities focused on developing and/or offering equipment and services geared towards spaceflight, both robotic and human. This list includes both inactive and active entities.
READ MORE ON WIKIPEDIASYNONYMS & ALIASES
- Gravitational slingshot
- swing-by
- planetary assist
- flyby maneuver
USAGE NOTE
Gravity assists are routinely used to accelerate or decelerate spacecraft for interplanetary travel.
DEVELOPERS
Organizations developing technology related to Gravity Assist.
A federally funded research and development center managed by Caltech for NASA. JPL is a world leader in designing interplanetary missions and has pioneered the use of gravity assists for decades, enabling missions like Voyager, Galileo, Cassini, and Juno to explore the outer solar system.
The intergovernmental organization dedicated to the exploration of space. ESA's mission design teams frequently utilize complex sequences of gravity assists to send probes to distant targets, as demonstrated by missions like Rosetta, BepiColombo, and the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE).
Japan's national aerospace agency. JAXA has demonstrated advanced capabilities in trajectory design and navigation, successfully using Earth gravity assists for its interplanetary missions, including the Hayabusa2 asteroid sample-return mission.
A software company that develops the Systems Tool Kit (STK), a leading physics-based software platform used extensively by aerospace engineers to model and analyze space missions. Its Astrogator capability allows for the precise design and optimization of trajectories involving multiple gravity assists.
A company providing mission engineering, software development, and services for space applications. Their flagship product, FreeFlyer, is a commercial-off-the-shelf astrodynamics tool used by NASA and other entities to plan, optimize, and operate missions that rely on gravity assist maneuvers.
As part of its long-term vision for interplanetary travel to Mars and beyond, SpaceX's mission planning for its Starship vehicle will necessitate the use of optimized trajectories, including gravity assists from Earth, the Moon, or other bodies, to achieve its goals efficiently.
A national nonprofit corporation that operates a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC). Its experts in astrodynamics provide technical analysis and guidance for U.S. national security space missions, including the design of complex trajectories that may utilize gravity assists.
An aerospace company that provides launch services and satellite components. Its Photon spacecraft platform is designed for lunar and interplanetary missions, requiring the company to develop expertise in complex trajectory design, including low-energy transfers that utilize gravitational forces, as demonstrated with the CAPSTONE mission.