\n Named after fast-flying birds, the telescope could quickly pivot to observe blink-and-you-miss-it cosmic events like flaring black holes. The telescope was originally designed to study the most powerful explosions in the universe, called gamma-ray bursts, but scientists have also used it to observe other types of cosmic flashes, as well as asteroids and comets.\n <\/p>\n
\n The 3,200-pound (1,452-kilogram) observatory is currently located about 200 miles (325 kilometers) above Earth. But engineers estimate that once Swift drifts below 185 miles (300 kilometers) in early to mid-October, operating the telescope will become a challenge, according to NASA<\/a>. Then, Swift will drop from orbit and is expected to burn up in Earth\u2019s atmosphere during the plunge.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWhile it\u2019s possible some hardware from the Swift spacecraft may survive re-entry due to its size, the probability of debris causing significant property damage or physical harm to anyone is very small,\u201d according to statement from space-tracking company LeoLabs shared with CNN via email. \u201cMore likely, as is the case with most debris that survives re-entry, it will fall into the ocean or on land that\u2019s uninhabited.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n NASA didn\u2019t respond to request for comment on the potential risks related to the observatory\u2019s reentry.\n <\/p>\n \n Scientists hoped that a rapidly produced satellite called LINK, which was developed, built and launched by Arizona-based Katalyst Space Technologies in just nine months, could grapple the telescope and lift it into a stable orbit.\n <\/p>\n \n The rescue mission to boost Swift failed just a few weeks after launching LINK in early July<\/a> as the satellite spun out of control in space<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cFrom the beginning, this was a high-risk, high-reward mission,\u201d said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, Astrophysics Division director at NASA, in a statement. \u201cWithout intervention, Swift was going to re-enter the atmosphere by year\u2019s end.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n But NASA and Katalyst say LINK\u2019s modified mission was not a wasted effort, with both groups learning lessons that could aid future space operations.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cAnd while we\u2019ll be sad to see Swift\u2019s mission come to a close, we knew this boost effort would be valuable to the agency on multiple levels \u2014 advancing U.S. spacecraft servicing technology, challenging us to meet unprecedented mission timelines, and testing how we operate satellites to extend their time in low Earth orbit,\u201d Domagal-Goldman further stated. \u201cWe\u2019re very proud of how quickly this team got so far, and we\u2019re capturing lessons learned to ensure we\u2019re ready to go even farther.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Katalyst decided to forge ahead with its plan for LINK to rendezvous with Swift in mid-August, but as a demonstration rather than a rescue because of LINK\u2019s ongoing orientation issues in space.\n <\/p>\n \n While Katalyst\u2019s engineers were able to use the satellite\u2019s thrusters to slow its unexpected spin and upload new flight software, the maneuver that reoriented LINK in space also depleted its propellant.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cAs a result, Katalyst and NASA together determined that LINK no longer had sufficient fuel to safely execute the planned capture and orbit-raising phase of the mission,\u201d according to Katalyst.\n <\/p>\n \n The satellite came within 7.5 to 9 miles<\/a> (12 to 15 kilometers) of Swift the first week of September, practicing how a future servicing mission may approach a satellite or telescope \u2014 especially one like Swift, which wasn\u2019t designed to be serviced in space.\n <\/p>\n \n LINK also deployed its three robotic arms, which were originally intended to grab Swift, and fired its three electric propulsion thrusters.\n <\/p>\n \n The satellite operated in space for 85 days before reentering Earth\u2019s atmosphere on September 25, according to Katalyst<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cLINK was built to take on a problem that did not have an easy solution,\u201d said Ghonhee Lee, CEO of Katalyst Space. \u201cWhile we did not accomplish every objective we set out to achieve, in less than a year we went from mission concept to launching and operating the first commercial space robot. This is a foundation we can build on.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Katalyst will apply data and lessons from LINK\u2019s mission to its next generation of spacecraft that could be used to service existing missions in space.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThe future of space will require spacecraft that can do more once they get there. We\u2019re building toward that future,\u201d Lee said.\n <\/p>\n \n The Swift Observatory, which does not have an established observational replacement waiting in the wings, has served as an astrophysics multitool in low-Earth orbit since it launched in November 2004.\n <\/p>\n \n Swift\u2019s mission scientists have slowly been turning the telescope\u2019s instruments back on to collect data and make observations right up until the end \u2014 which is actually accelerating the observatory\u2019s decline.\n <\/p>\n \n The instruments were shut off for months to reduce power use and keep Swift from sinking.\n <\/p>\n \n Swift was steadily losing altitude due to atmospheric drag, which was only magnified by an increase in solar activity over the past couple of years as the sun reached the peak of its 11-year cycle<\/a> in 2024.\n <\/p>\n \n Intense flares and coronal mass ejections caused Earth\u2019s atmosphere to expand, which intensified the drag on Swift, leading scientists to predict it would descend toward our planet in the fall, according to NASA.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWhen Neil Gehrels, Swift\u2019s namesake, designed the observatory, nothing like it had ever launched,\u201d said S. Bradley Cenko, Swift\u2019s principal investigator at NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. \u201cHe would have celebrated that this boost effort was part of Swift\u2019s legacy, that it allowed NASA to try something new and daring even though the outcome wasn\u2019t guaranteed.\u201d\n <\/p>\n![\"Katalyst](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/ne201073.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Swift](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/linkswiftimage.jpg\")
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