Burn out

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In rocket technology, burnout refers to the time at which the engines of a rocket or rocket stage are switched off . This does not necessarily mean that all of the stage's fuel has been consumed; rather, the point in the rocket's ascent path has been reached at which the engines are to be switched off. In the case of solid fuel rockets , however, the engines cannot be switched off. They burn until the fuel is used up, but in the last few seconds (fractions) the thrust decreases. Therefore, they do not have an exact burnout, but burn out. Solid fuel boosters are usually thrown off during the burnout before the thrust they generate falls below their empty weight.

In the upper stages of launch vehicles , residual fuel may be used for the targeted crash of the stage after the payload has been deployed. There are also re-ignitable upper stages so that the stage can be used several times for orbit maneuvers or shots after the first burnout .

After the rocket motors burn out, the "free flight path" (or passive path) follows. If there are no other forces acting, the flying object continues to move at a constant burning speed.

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