NASA's final Pegasus XL rocket launch will send satellite to rescue Swift space telescope from orbital decay
By
Josh Dinner
Summary
NASA is launching a rescue mission on June 30 using the final flight of Northrop Grumman's Pegasus XL rocket. The mission, called Swift Boost, will send Katalyst Space Technologies' LINK satellite to grapple NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory and tow it to a stable orbit, preventing the space telescope from burning up in Earth's atmosphere as its trajectory decays.
Source
Twitter / XNASA's final Pegasus XL rocket launch will send satellite to rescue Swift space telescope from orbital decayspace.comKey quotes
· 3 pulledThe Swift Boost mission will send the LINK satellite to grapple NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory and tow it to a stable orbit, saving it from impending destruction as its trajectory dips farther into the atmosphere.
An air-launched Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket is scheduled to fly for the very last time early Tuesday morning (June 30).
A rocket launching to space from an airplane is sort of like a hat on a hat, but you know what? The more hats, the better.
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