NASA's Swift space telescope plunges back to Earth in fiery demise
The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory crashed back to Earth nearly 22 years after launch, following a failed rescue mission.
Quick Look
- NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory re-entered Earth's atmosphere over North Sumatra, Indonesia, on Wednesday at 7:39 am EST, nearly 22 years after its 2004 launch.
- The $500 million satellite, which studied gamma-ray bursts far beyond its planned two-year mission, fell after a failed rescue attempt by Katalyst Space's LINK spacecraft.
- Most of the craft burned up, with no immediate reports of ground damage.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
NASA's Swift observatory was launched in 2004 with a planned two-year mission to study gamma-ray bursts. It operated for nearly 22 years, studying supernovae, black holes, stellar flares, asteroids, and comets, and contributed to nearly 7,000 scientific papers. In July, NASA contracted Katalyst Space to raise the satellite's altitude using the LINK robotic servicing spacecraft, but the mission failed when LINK experienced attitude control issues and re-entered in September.
A premier NASA space telescope met a fiery end as it crashed back to Earth — two decades after its launch — following the failure of a rescue mission.
The unmanned Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory re-entered the Earth's atmosphere over the North Sumatra region of Indonesia on Wednesday at 7.39 am EST (12.39 pm UTC), the US space agency said.
Most of the spacecraft was expected to have burnt up as it traveled through the atmosphere, NASA said, adding that some components may have survived re-entry.
What was NASA's Swift mission?
NASA's prized Swift observatory — equipped with three telescopes — was launched into orbit in 2004.
The observatory was tasked with studying gamma ray bursts, the biggest energy blasts in universe for two years. But its mission spanned 11 times longer than planned, lasting just a few days short of 22 years.
The $500 million (€444 million) Swift satellite weighed roughly 1,452 kilograms (3,200 pounds).
It studied hundreds of supernova explosions, star-shredding black holes, stellar X-ray flares, asteroids and comets.
Swift also contributed to nearly 7,000 published scientific papers.
Failed attempt to rescue Swift observatory
The satellite, which was in a good condition, fell out of orbit partly due to powerful geomagnetic storms set off by solar eruptions.
In July, NASA roped in private company Katalyst Space and launched a mission to raise the altitude of the Swift observatory.
But Katalyst Space's three-armed robotic servicing spacecraft — called LINK — faced issues with attitude control soon after reaching space, causing it to spin uncontrollably.
The rescue vehicle plunged back to Earth in September, while Swift ceased operations on October 20.
There were no immediate reports of damage on ground as the Swift observatory fell back to its home planet.
Open Questions
- Whether any surviving components of the Swift observatory reached the ground
- The exact cause of the geomagnetic storms' impact on Swift's orbit
- Whether NASA plans any further deorbit or debris recovery efforts
