NASA plans unprecedented rescue mission to save Swift space telescope from orbital decay
By
Tariq Malik
Summary
NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a gamma-ray burst-hunting space telescope in orbit for over 20 years, is experiencing orbital decay and faces destruction by the end of 2025. NASA has a daring, unprecedented rescue plan: contracting commercial company Katalyst Space to build a spacecraft in just nine months that would rendezvous with Swift and boost it to a higher orbit, extending its operational life. This mission would be the first-ever commercial space salvage and life-extension operation, potentially opening a new era of in-space servicing for aging satellites and telescopes.
Source
bskyNASA plans unprecedented rescue mission to save Swift space telescope from orbital decayshare.googleKey quotes
· 3 pulledNo one thought it was going to be possible.
This is a very ambitious timeline, but we think we can do it.
Swift has been one of the most prolific missions in NASA's astrophysics portfolio, and extending its life would be a huge win for science.
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