NASA launched an emergency mission to stop the Swift Observatory from crashing to Earth
The short version
- To try and stave off its demise , NASA has enlisted Katalyst Space Technologies.
- The company's Link spacecraft launched Friday with the goal of intercepting Swift, which has no propulsion system, and boosting its orbit back to its original position.
- Right now, Swift is circling at an altitude of 224 miles, and Link is aiming to raise that by about 150 miles.
- Using a three-armed spacecraft to lift a satellite 150 miles higher into orbit is challenging enough, but the spee … Read the full story at The Verge.
The story
The Swift Observatory was launched in 2004, but recent solar storms have pushed its orbit lower, and it's in danger of burning up in Earth's atmosphere as soon as this year. To try and stave off its demise, NASA has enlisted Katalyst Space Technologies. The company's Link spacecraft launched Friday with the goal of intercepting Swift, which has no propulsion system, and boosting its orbit back to its original position. Right now, Swift is circling at an altitude of 224 miles, and Link is aiming to raise that by about 150 miles.
Using a three-armed spacecraft to lift a satellite 150 miles higher into orbit is challenging enough, but the spee …
How other outlets covered this
Compare allAlto found this story at 6 outlets. Same event, different framing — compare the headlines.
- Google NewsHackaday Links: August 23, 2026 - Hackaday3 days ago
- The VergeNASA gives up on trying to rescue the Swift telescope7 days ago
- EngadgetNASA calls off mission to rescue the falling Swift observatory7 days ago
- AxiosNASA aborts mission to save dying space telescope8 days ago
- DW NewsSwift Boost Mission: an opportunity for science and defenseabout 2 months ago
- APNASA races to save Swift telescope from falling back to Earth with daring rescue missionabout 2 months ago
How this story developed
Full timelineAlto has tracked this across 10 days of coverage from 6 outlets.
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