WASHINGTON / Content Syndication Services / – NASA is preparing a robotic mission to raise the orbit of the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a space telescope that has tracked high-energy events across the universe since 2004. The Swift Boost mission targets launch no earlier than Tuesday, June 30, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The mission aims to lift Swift from a lower orbit after solar activity increased drag on the spacecraft.
The observatory has no propulsion system to correct its orbit. Recent solar storms heated Earth’s upper atmosphere, which made it expand and increased drag on objects in low Earth orbit. That process caused Swift to lose altitude faster than expected. NASA temporarily suspended most of Swift’s science work in February and changed the spacecraft’s orientation to reduce drag before the boost attempt.
Katalyst Space Technologies built the LINK robotic servicing spacecraft for the operation under a contract awarded in September 2025. LINK will launch on a Pegasus XL rocket carried by Northrop Grumman’s Stargazer aircraft. The plane will climb to about 40,000 feet before releasing the rocket. Pegasus XL will then fire its motors and place LINK in orbit for the Swift rendezvous.
Robotic spacecraft to approach Swift
LINK will use precision guidance, navigation and control systems to approach the observatory. The spacecraft carries three robotic arms designed to grasp Swift, which engineers did not build for in-orbit servicing. After capture, LINK will use electric propulsion to raise the telescope over several months. The mission plan includes checks after launch, an approach phase, inspection of capture points and a controlled boost.
Swift needs to stay above about 185 miles, or 300 kilometers, for the boost attempt to have the best chance of success. The observatory studies gamma-ray bursts, X-rays, ultraviolet light and visible light. Scientists use those tools to track brief and powerful events, including cosmic explosions and fast-changing targets. Swift also alerts other telescopes so they can observe the same events.
Mission follows two decades of science
Swift launched on Nov. 20, 2004, as a medium-class explorer mission. Its instruments include the Burst Alert Telescope, the X-Ray Telescope and the Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope. The mission involves U.S. and international partners, including the Italian Space Agency and the UK Space Agency. Pennsylvania State University supports mission operations, while Goddard Space Flight Center manages the mission.
The Swift Boost mission also tests commercial robotic servicing for a spacecraft that was not designed for docking or repair. The mission uses the Reagan Test Range on Kwajalein Atoll because that launch path can send LINK toward Swift’s orbit. The agency has described the effort as a way to retain a working science asset while demonstrating a servicing method for low Earth orbit spacecraft.