NASA and commercial partners are preparing a high-stakes, uncrewed “Swift boost mission” to raise the Swift Observatory’s orbit before it risks uncontrolled reentry—potentially extending the telescope’s life after increased solar storms have caused it to fall
A telescope that has watched the universe for more than two decades is running out of time.
Swift Observatory. launched in 2004 and currently drifting in low-Earth orbit closer to the atmosphere. is expected to face an uncontrolled reentry risk if NASA’s rescue plan doesn’t work. NASA and commercial aerospace partners are aiming to launch an uncrewed spacecraft that will boost Swift into a higher orbit—an effort scheduled to begin in June. with NASA working toward a Tuesday. June 30 launch window.
S. Bradley Cenko, Swift principal investigator at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, said in a statement: “Swift has been a key player in NASA’s efforts to understand how the universe works, and we’re looking forward to getting back to that work after the boost is complete.”
NASA’s urgency is rooted in physics that doesn’t wait. In the region where Swift operates—low-Earth orbit. near the altitude of the International Space Station—spacecraft can fall to lower altitudes if they lack propulsion to counter atmospheric drag. NASA says Swift is falling faster than anticipated, driven by increased solar storms since fall 2024.
To prevent what NASA calls a fiery end in the atmosphere, the agency is planning a mission to raise Swift’s orbit and extend its life “for several more years,” avoiding the need to replace the observatory with new spending, NASA said in a press release.
Swift’s science is difficult to overstate. Its primary objective is to observe gamma-ray bursts—events triggered by the catastrophic deaths of massive stars and described as among the most powerful explosions in the universe. Swift carries three multiwavelength telescopes able to collect data in visible, ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma-ray light.
The rescue effort also carries a different kind of historical pressure: NASA says it would be the first time a commercial robotic spacecraft captures a government satellite that was not designed to be serviced in space. NASA also says the mission would test capabilities that could apply to future missions.
The spacecraft tasked with the job is LINK, built by Katalyst Space, an aerospace company based in Flagstaff, Arizona. Katalyst received a $30 million contract in September 2025.
Swift’s design makes the mission especially demanding. Because it has no docking ports or grappling fixtures. Katalyst designed the 880-pound. 5-foot tall LINK spacecraft with a custom robotic capture mechanism intended to attach to a feature on Swift’s main structure. Katalyst says the approach is meant to mitigate the chance of damaging sensitive instruments.
Ground teams don’t have unlimited time to wait for a window that matches orbital dynamics. According to Katalyst. Swift has a 50% chance of making an uncontrolled reentry by mid-2026 without intervention. and those odds rise to 90% by the end of 2026. Until the boost mission has the best chance of success. NASA says mission teams are keeping Swift at least 185 miles above Earth.
The launch itself will be handled by Northrop Grumman. a Virginia-based aerospace and defense company that manufactures the selected rocket: the Pegasus XL. described as a small-lift vehicle and characterized by Northrop Grumman as the world’s first privately developed orbital launch vehicle. The rocket has flown on 45 missions, including its maiden voyage in 1990.
In mid-June. LINK was securely encapsulated in a payload fairing inside the Pegasus XL rocket at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. according to Katalyst. Around the same time. Pegasus XL was attached to the belly of Northrop Grumman’s Stargazer aircraft. which was tasked with deploying the rocket. The Stargazer aircraft took off June 18 from Wallops bound for the Marshall Islands, where the mission is due to commence.
NASA’s target timing is specific. The Pegasus XL rocket is due to launch later in June from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, located in the South Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and the Philippines. NASA is working toward a Tuesday, June 30 liftoff, with a window opening at 6:23 a.m. ET.
The mission plan relies on an air-launch approach rather than a traditional vertical launch from a pad. Northrop Grumman will have Stargazer L-1011 take off and climb to approximately 40. 000 feet over the ocean. where Pegasus will be released. After several seconds in free-fall. the Pegasus XL will ignite the first of its three-stage rocket motors. delivering LINK into orbit in about 10 minutes. according to Northrop Grumman.
Once LINK reaches orbit, the effort shifts from launch to delicate proximity operations. Katalyst will spend a few weeks evaluating LINK’s propulsion, navigation, and sensor systems. The spacecraft will then be ordered to slowly approach and survey Swift before grabbing the observatory with its robotic arms and slowly raising the orbit to nearly 370 miles. NASA says that entire process is expected to take several months.
For Swift, the timeline is no longer theoretical. It is counted in orbital altitude, in reentry probabilities, and in a window of days where technology has to perform like it was built for this moment.
NASA Swift Observatory Swift boost mission Katalyst Space LINK spacecraft Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL Kwajalein Atoll reentry risk gamma-ray bursts low-Earth orbit