1.NounA method of soft-landing a rocket with a well-timed, high-thrust engine burn starting at the last possible second, such that it reaches a vertical speed of zero at precisely or almost precisely at the exact moment that it touches the landing pad and the engine shuts down.
2.NounAn instance of such a landing.
"A suicide burn is a more efficient method of landing than slowly decelerating over the length of a long descent, as a smaller proportion of the engine's thrust is spent fighting against gravity."