Marshall Islands, Pacific Ocean – A Pegasus rocket operated by Northrop Grumman launched from the Marshall Islands on Friday local time, carrying Katalyst Space Technologies' Link spacecraft on an unprecedented robotic rescue mission to save NASA's aging Swift space telescope from an uncontrolled descent. Swift, launched in 2004 and weighing about 1.4 metric tons, is currently orbiting roughly 360 kilometers above Earth but has been losing altitude more rapidly than before because of increased atmospheric drag linked to recent solar storms. Observations from the telescope, which studies powerful cosmic events such as gamma ray bursts and exploding stars, are on hold to conserve its orbit while the rescue proceeds. The Link spacecraft is expected to take about a month to reach and capture the Swift Observatory and then use its own thrusters to slowly raise the telescope’s orbit by approximately 240 kilometers, returning it to the altitude where it began operations. NASA is paying Katalyst $30 million for the mission, which aims to prevent Swift from reentering and burning up in the atmosphere, an outcome currently forecast for October without intervention. The launch followed a series of weather- and technical-related delays earlier in the week. If Link successfully stabilizes Swift’s orbit and restores its operations by September, the project could serve as a model for extending the lives of other satellites, including NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, which is also gradually losing altitude.

Prepared by Olivia Bennett and reviewed by editorial team.