flyby

noun

fly·​by ˈflī-ˌbī 

plural flybys

1

: a prearranged usually low-altitude flight by one or more airplanes over a public gathering (such as an air show)

2

a

: a flight of a spacecraft past a celestial body (such as Mars) close enough to obtain scientific data

b

: a spacecraft that makes a flyby

Examples of flyby in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Parker will transmit another beacon Friday to confirm its health following the close flyby, NASA said. —Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 23 Dec. 2024

Parker is scheduled to transmit a beacon tone on Friday to confirm its health following the close flyby, according to the space agency. —Rebecca Falconer, Axios, 23 Dec. 2024

Parker outdid that number on its first flyby; now, the newer probe will be seven times closer than Helios 2 came. —Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Dec. 2024

On the spacecraft's fifth flyby of Mercury earlier this month (out of a planned six flybys) BepiColombo pointed its Mercury Radiometer and Thermal Infrared Spectrometer (MERTIS) at a swath of Mercury's northern hemisphere. —Kiona N. Smith, Space.com, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1953, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

flyby

noun

fly·​by -ˌbī 

plural flybys

1

: a usually low-altitude flight past a chosen place by one or more aircraft

2

a

: a flight of a spacecraft past a heavenly body (as Mars) close enough to obtain scientific information

b

: a spacecraft that makes a flyby