Rescue mission is called off for NASA's aging Swift space telescope

NASA's mission to rescue its aging Swift Observatory failed on Wednesday, leaving the space telescope to burn up in the atmosphere on its own later this year. The decision came a month after Katalyst Space Technologies launched its Link spacecraft to attempt the rescue. Katalyst explained they would not be able to capture Swift and boost it to a higher orbit due to control issues with the spacecraft.

NASA had paid Katalyst $30 million to raise the telescope to a safer orbit. Intense solar activity had caused Swift to lose altitude faster than expected. The rescue mission's spacecraft, Link, went into uncontrollable spin just weeks after its July liftoff, and continued to experience problems with its pointing and positioning in orbit.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman called the outcome "not the result we were working toward," but emphasized the mission's worth. Katalyst will still operate Link near Swift to showcase future rescue capabilities. Swift's science instruments were shut down earlier this year to slow its descent. The telescope, launched in 2004, was orbiting 216 miles high as of last week.

If the rescue mission had succeeded, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope would have benefited next. Hubble, also losing orbit due to increased solar activity, has yet to be determined if it is out of luck.