NASA and Katalyst Space Technologies have called off a robotic mission to rescue the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory before it falls out of orbit, Ars Technica reported on Wednesday.
The rescue craft, named Link, suffered attitude control failures in late July that left it unable to complete its docking and boosting objectives. Katalyst built the refrigerator-sized spacecraft under a $30 million NASA contract awarded less than a year ago, completing development and launch preparations in nine months.
Trouble began several weeks after Link's July 3 launch when the spacecraft suddenly spun out of control. Two of the satellite's three reaction wheels stopped working, alongside issues with cold gas thrusters used for fine pointing control. Katalyst did not say what caused the problem. The failures left engineers relying entirely on three low-impulse plasma thrusters to manage orientation while traveling at nearly five miles per second.
The satellite remains active in orbit, and teams are assessing whether Link can still perform a demonstration of its close-in navigation systems near Swift. Katalyst originally equipped the craft with two solar arrays, three xenon-fueled electric thrusters, and three robotic arms designed to capture the observatory and boost it to a higher altitude.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman defended the project, stating that the agency took calculated risks on an aggressive timeline to attempt to save the spacecraft. Shawn Domagal-Goldman, director of NASA's astrophysics division, said the operational effort advanced in-space servicing capabilities despite missing the primary objective.
Swift is now expected to fall back into Earth's atmosphere and burn up later this year. The $500 million observatory has operated for nearly 22 years—well past its initial two-year design life—to detect and locate gamma-ray bursts, but it lacks onboard thrusters to maintain its own orbit.
