2 ms·
Remember that no matter how far from the earth you get, you're always being pulled by it, decreasing velocity. The Webb left earth moving at 7km/s, but now is g
by mabbo 5y ago
Remember that no matter how far from the earth you get, you're always being pulled by it, decreasing velocity. The Webb left earth moving at 7km/s, but now is going less than 1km/s.
It's going to let Earth's gravity slow it down so that it reaches (effectively) zero at exactly the right spot.
It's literally rocket science to do the equations to make it work, but by God we've gotten pretty good at it.