The automatic spinning of an object, particularly a helicopter's rotor blades, caused by air flowing through it during descent without engine power.
From autorotate + -ion (action or condition). Developed in early 20th-century aviation as pilots discovered this life-saving principle.
Helicopters have a hidden superpower—when their engines fail, the descent itself creates wind that spins the rotors fast enough to make a controlled landing, which is why helicopter pilots practice this constantly!
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