Northrop Grumman launches spacecraft to retrieve NASA's Swift telescope
A Pegasus-launched vehicle will attempt to capture and raise the orbit of the aging Swift Observatory, which is descending due to solar activity, with a target return to service by September.
A three-armed spacecraft was launched Friday from the Marshall Islands aboard a Pegasus rocket to rendezvous with NASA’s Swift Observatory, which is descending to a dangerously low orbit. The Link vehicle, built by Katalyst Space Technologies and flown by Northrop Grumman, is expected to reach Swift within a month and use its thrusters to lift the 1.6-ton telescope about 150 miles (240 km) higher, restoring it to its original altitude of roughly 224 miles (360 km).
Swift, launched in 2004, has been losing altitude faster after recent solar storms increased atmospheric drag. NASA has allocated $30 million for the rescue, hoping the telescope can resume observations of gamma-ray bursts and other cosmic explosions by September. Current observations are paused to preserve the remaining orbit.
Katalyst assembled the mission in nine months after NASA warned that Swift could re-enter the atmosphere as early as October if not boosted. The company cited the operation as “high-risk, high-reward,” emphasizing the urgency of preventing the telescope’s loss.
The successful capture could set a precedent for future salvage efforts, including a possible similar mission for the Hubble Space Telescope, which is also experiencing orbital decay.