NASA abandons plan to boost Swift telescope after rescue mission fails

NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is scheduled to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere later this year after a failed attempt to rescue the aging space telescope in a private mission. The $30 million Swift Boost mission, contracted in 2025 to Arizona-based aerospace startup Katalyst Space, aimed to boost Swift into a higher orbit. However, the mission encountered issues shortly after launch.

In late July, electrical problems affected two systems controlling LINK, the rescue spacecraft, causing it to spin uncontrollably. NASA announced on August 19 that the original rescue objective would not be pursued. Administrator Jared Isaacman stated that while this was not the desired outcome, the mission's worth was in attempting it.

Swift has been orbiting Earth since 2004, studying gamma-ray bursts. Orbital decay has been accelerated by increased solar activity, causing atmospheric drag to become more significant. The Swift Boost mission, described as high-risk and high-reward, was executed on an unprecedented timeline. Although the original plan to raise Swift’s orbit has been abandoned, LINK will still attempt rendezvous and proximity operations with Swift to demonstrate technologies for future satellite-servicing missions.

NASA and Katalyst will also study data from LINK’s attempt to gain insights for future efforts to service or rescue aging spacecraft in orbit. With no further intervention, NASA anticipates Swift’s re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere later this year.