What is Trans-Lunar Injection (TLI)?

Trans-Lunar Injection (TLI) is the special push that sends a spacecraft from Earth's orbit toward the Moon.

Imagine you're on a swing. You pump your legs to go higher and higher, that’s like how TLI works. When a spaceship is going around Earth, it needs one more big kick to leave Earth's gravity and head toward the Moon. This kick is done by the rocket’s engine firing at just the right moment.

Think of your backpack full of books. If you try to run with it, it feels heavy, but if you get a good push, you can zoom off like a superhero. TLI is that superhero push for the spacecraft. It helps the spaceship escape Earth’s pull and start its journey to the Moon.

Without TLI, the spaceship would just keep going around Earth, like a satellite, it wouldn’t get anywhere near the Moon. But with that special push, it can travel all the way to our space neighbor and maybe even land there!