Interplanetary Spaceships Can Be Sent to Distant Parts of the Solar

Essay

Interplanetary spaceships can be sent to distant parts of the solar system by means of the "gravitational slingshot" method. The spaceship makes a brief close encounter with a massive planet and is flung away in a different direction of travel. Assuming the approach and post-encounter directions of the spaceship, as seen from the planet, are opposite to each other, describe how the spaceship may increase its overall velocity relative to the Sun.