NASA halts Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory rescue after link failure

Technology Aug 26, 2026

NASA just called off its plan to save the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a space telescope that has been orbiting since 2004.

Thanks to increased solar activity, Swift's orbit is dropping fast, and without help, it is expected to burn up in Earth's atmosphere by the end of this year.

LINK to perform close-up experiments

NASA turned to Katalyst Space Technologies (whose LINK spacecraft launched in July 2026) to boost Swift's orbit.

But things did not go as planned: LINK lost control and started spinning out, making docking impossible.

Even after a flight-software update temporarily helped restore attitude control, the problem would not go away, so NASA pulled the plug on August 19, 2026.

Now, LINK will stick around Swift for some close-up experiments that could help future satellite-servicing missions.