NASA's first space telescope rescue mission fails

NASA's unprecedented mission to save the Swift space telescope from atmospheric re-entry has ended in failure. The space agency announced that its attempt to boost the orbit of the 'Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory' was unsuccessful due to technical limitations and fuel depletion in the rescue spacecraft.

The Swift telescope, which has been observing powerful gamma-ray bursts since 2004, was facing a rapid orbital decay accelerated by unexpectedly strong solar activity. Unlike many satellites, Swift lacks the capability to independently raise its orbit. NASA had contracted with the private space company Catalyst Space to build a refrigerator-sized rescue spacecraft, named 'Link,' designed to capture Swift with robotic arms and gradually lift its orbit over three months.

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Although this was not the outcome we aimed for, the fact that we attempted this mission remains unchanged.

Catalyst Space managed to build and launch Link in just nine months, a remarkably short time for spacecraft development. However, in late July, Link experienced propulsion system malfunctions, leading to a loss of attitude control. During the subsequent repair attempts, the spacecraft consumed too much fuel, leaving it without the necessary power to complete its primary mission of rescuing Swift.

While the capture attempt has been called off, NASA plans to continue proximity flight and docking attempts with Link, hoping to gather valuable data for future space missions. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson stated that although the outcome was not as planned, the attempt itself was worthwhile. Swift is expected to conduct scientific observations for about another month before its inevitable re-entry into Earth's atmosphere, with minimal risk of debris reaching the surface.

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We expect to be able to conduct observations for about a month before re-entering the atmosphere. Some debris may reach the surface upon re-entry, but the risk of casualties is very low.