How does a gravity assist work? Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice explain the slingshot effect and the spacecraft that we’ve sent out of the solar system with it (like Pioneer and Voyager missions). Is Pluto secretly the savior of humanity due to blunder on Pioneer 10 & 11’s gold plaques?

We break it down…

Timestamps:
00:00 – The Slingshot Effect
01:25 – Pioneer 10 & 11: The First to Exit the Solar System
05:22 – Voyager & New Horizons
06:47 – How Gravity Assists Actually Speed You Up
08:07 – How to Fall Into the Sun
09:36 – Closing Thoughts

Credit to : StarTalk