Also in this video of a rocket ship, why is there some gas leaking out of the sides? [https://youtu.be/gA6ppby3JC8?t=81](https://youtu.be/gA6ppby3JC8?t=81)
In: Technology
The most common way to steer rockets is with gimbaling. This is where the nozzle of the rocket swivels so that it can point in different directions. [You can see it in action in this video](https://youtu.be/J9F0WzdV4fI?t=37).
Another method is through a reaction control system (commonly referred to as RCS). This is a series of small nozzles that act like mini-rocket engines that can push in different directions. [Picture.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/LM_RCS.jpg/220px-LM_RCS.jpg)
A third method is to use aerodynamics. They use control surfaces the same way that airplanes do to steer the craft. An example would be the Falcon 9 rocket which uses grid fins [picture](https://i.stack.imgur.com/AMiHX.jpg) to help control itself during descent. If you watch the onboard videos of the rocket you can see them wiggling around to steer the spent stage as it comes back down, which is pretty neat.
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