2009: Dawn Gravity Assist Feb. 7

The NASA DAWN spacecraft, enroute to visit asteroids Vesta in 2011 and Ceres in 2015, will gain a gravity assist from the planet Mars February 7, 2009 to gain speed [Vid-1 and Vid-2]. Dawn's ion engines may get a short workout next January to provide any final orbital adjustments prior to its encounter with the Red Planet.