The European Space Agency's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) executed another flawless gravity assist this month, this time sweeping past Venus.

Having successfully completed the unprecedented lunar-Earth gravity assist last year, this Venus flyby represents the next major orbital adjustment required to fling the spacecraft out toward the Jovian system.

These intricate interplanetary billiards are essential because modern launch vehicles simply don't have enough power to send a spacecraft of this size directly to Jupiter. The navigation team at ESA continues to thread the needle perfectly on this long, winding road to the outer solar system.

ESA: Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer