NASA satellite rescue mission fails, swift telescope set to fall to earth

NASA and private company Katalyst Space Technologies called off a $30 million mission to rescue the aging Swift Observatory, meaning the space telescope will fall through Earth's atmosphere and burn up later this year. The rescue spacecraft, called Link (or LINK), launched in early July but developed uncontrollable spin and pointing problems weeks later, preventing it from capturing Swift and boosting it to a higher orbit as planned. Swift, launched in 2004 to study gamma-ray bursts and other high-energy cosmic events, had already had its science instruments turned off and was losing altitude faster than expected due to intense solar activity. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the mission was still worth attempting despite the outcome, and Katalyst plans to keep operating Link near Swift to gather data for future satellite servicing efforts.