NASA Taps Startup for Daring Mission to Save Space Telescope from Earthly Plunge

NASA is preparing a high-stakes, high-reward mission to rescue the Swift Observatory, a vital space telescope launched in 2004, from an impending plunge back to Earth. The space agency has enlisted the startup Katalyst Space Technologies to perform an in-orbit boost, aiming to extend the observatory's operational life.

The mission, costing $30 million, involves launching a refrigerator-sized robot named Link. This robotic spacecraft is equipped with three arms, each about one meter long and ending in two pincer-like grips. Link will rendezvous with Swift, grapple it, and gradually raise its altitude from the current precarious 224 miles (360 km) to a more stable 373 miles (600 km) above Earth. This maneuver is expected to take several months.

Swift, a critical instrument known for its ability to quickly observe transient cosmic events like supernova explosions, is in danger due to intense solar weather. The sun's peak in its 11-year cycle in 2024 caused Earth's atmosphere to expand, increasing drag on satellites. Swift's orbit has degraded to a point where it could burn up in the atmosphere by the end of 2026 if no action is taken.

"If we let Swift re-enter, we would lose that telescope. We would lose a lot of capability," said Nicky Fox, NASA's science mission chief, in comments to The Associated Press. "We don't currently have the budget to build another one to replace that."

NASA contracted Katalyst Space Technologies in September to devise a preservation strategy. The urgency stems from Swift's projected passage of a critical re-entry point at 185 miles (300 km) above Earth in November. The tight timeline allowed less than a year to design, build, and launch the rescue robot.

"I have to be honest. No one thought it was going to be possible. No one thought we would get as far as we've already gotten today," stated Shawn Domagal-Goldman, NASA's astrophysics director.

The Link robot will launch from an atoll in the Marshall Islands aboard a Northrop Grumman Pegasus rocket. The rocket will be carried to an altitude of 40,000 feet beneath an airplane before being released. After a brief free-fall, the rocket's engines will ignite, propelling Link into orbit.

Once in orbit, Link will spend approximately one month traveling to rendezvous with Swift. The subsequent months will be dedicated to slowly raising Swift's orbit. If successful, Swift could resume full operational capacity by September, potentially extending its mission by several years. This operation is particularly important as NASA's science mission budget has been significantly reduced, making replacement of such a valuable asset unfeasible.

This mission also serves as a crucial test for Katalyst's capabilities in salvaging and maintaining spacecraft. These skills may soon be required for the Hubble Space Telescope, which has also been affected by solar weather and is expected to need an orbital boost in 2028. Lessons learned from the Swift mission could be instrumental in ensuring Hubble's continued operation.

"Swift wasn't designed to be serviced. By demonstrating we can quickly and cost-effectively extend its lifetime, we're creating a blueprint for servicing spacecraft that were never designed for on-orbit maintenance," said Ghonhee Lee, CEO of Katalyst.