NASA Ends Swift Observatory's 22-Year Mission as Orbit Decay Forces Reentry Within Weeks
Updated
Updated · Livescience.com · Oct 26
NASA Ends Swift Observatory's 22-Year Mission as Orbit Decay Forces Reentry Within Weeks
3 articles · Updated · Livescience.com · Oct 26
Summary
NASA shut down Swift's science operations on Oct. 20 after the observatory dropped to about 171 miles (275 km), too low to make reliable measurements.
Intense solar activity increased atmospheric drag, and an August attempt to raise Swift's orbit with a private spacecraft failed after hardware malfunctions left the rescue craft burning up in the atmosphere.
NASA expects Swift to break apart on reentry in the next few weeks, ending any chance of saving the satellite.
Launched in 2004 for a planned 2-year mission, Swift operated for 22 years and produced thousands of observations that contributed to about 7,000 scientific papers.
Swift's rapid-response design let it pivot within minutes to study gamma-ray bursts, supernovas and other short-lived high-energy events, helping reshape astrophysics.