NASA Launches Robotic Mission From Marshall Islands To Save Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory

NASA launched a robotic mission to save the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory from burning up in Earth’s atmosphere, with the operation expected to last several months.

“NASA has launched a robotic mission to try to prevent one of its ageing telescopes from burning up in the atmosphere in a complicated operation expected to last several months”

Al Jazeera

Northrop Grumman launched the Link spacecraft—built by Katalyst Space Technologies—from the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean on Friday, after a Pegasus rocket blasted off from the belly of a modified aircraft.

Al Jazeera

The mission is designed to reach and capture Swift in about a month, then use three robotic arms to dock and perform checks before attempting to propel the telescope approximately 300km (186 miles) higher.

NASA is paying $30 million for Katalyst to capture the telescope and boost its orbit so it can continue tracking gamma ray bursts and exploding stars.

Shawn Domagal-Goldman, director of NASA’s astrophysics division, said, “This is a lot of firsts stacked on top of each other,” as the agency worked to prevent Swift from dropping below a recoverable altitude.

The Link launch was delayed from an initially scheduled Tuesday attempt due to weather, then technical issues, before blast-off happened on Friday at 0836 GMT from an atoll in the Pacific Ocean.

AP reported that the Pegasus rocket blasted off from the belly of a modified airplane, putting Link on course to reach and capture NASA’s Swift Observatory in about a month, and that observations are currently on hold to preserve the telescope’s orbit.

AP News

The BBC described the rescue as “high risk,” quoting Dr Simeon Barber of the Open University saying, “But Nasa obviously thinks it's worth a go.”

According to the BBC, Swift was launched in 2004 and has now lowered to around 220 miles (360 km), with most of that descent in the past two years due to increased solar activity pushing out Earth’s atmosphere.

Katalyst Space CEO Ghonhee Lee said ahead of liftoff, “This is a high-risk, high-reward mission,” emphasizing the “biggest danger” as letting Swift burn up in the atmosphere.

NASA’s plan depends on Swift remaining above a threshold altitude, with AP noting that without a boost it’s predicted to plunge to its demise in October and that Swift could be back scanning the cosmos by September if all goes well.

The BBC said the rescue craft will approach Swift very slowly and attach itself to the telescope, and it quoted Barber describing the mission as a way to study super high-energy phenomena “that we have no other means to study.”

New Scientist framed the effort as a demonstration that “it is possible to save a space telescope,” while also warning that all satellites’ orbits eventually decay and Swift is no exception.

In a statement, Katalyst CEO Ghonhee Lee said, “Swift wasn’t designed to be serviced,” and added that demonstrating a quick, cost-effective extension would create “a blueprint for servicing spacecraft that were never designed for on-orbit maintenance.”

The mission’s consequences extend beyond Swift because AP reported NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope could be a candidate for a similar salvage operation in a few years, while the BBC said the rescue is intended to keep Swift operating through the coming months.