Katalyst Space to Launch 400-Kilogram LINK in June 2026 to Raise NASA Swift Orbit
Updated
Updated · Science@NASA · Jun 5
Katalyst Space to Launch 400-Kilogram LINK in June 2026 to Raise NASA Swift Orbit
3 articles · Updated · Science@NASA · Jun 5
Summary
June 2026 is the target launch window for Katalyst Space’s LINK servicing craft, which will try to rendezvous with NASA’s Swift Observatory and push it into a higher orbit before re-entry risk rises in fall 2026.
Increased solar activity has sped up orbital decay, putting Swift in a race against the clock; NASA says the observatory’s average altitude needs to stay above about 185 miles, or 300 kilometers, to maximize the boost attempt.
Pegasus XL will carry the 880-pound, three-armed LINK spacecraft from Kwajalein Atoll directly into Swift’s orbit after integration at NASA Wallops and ferrying under Northrop Grumman’s L-1011 carrier aircraft.
A successful capture would mark the first commercial robotic mission to seize a NASA spacecraft that is uncrewed and was not originally designed for in-space servicing.
NASA has already suspended Swift science operations and changed its orientation to cut drag, betting that extending the 2004 observatory will preserve a key gamma-ray-burst mission at far lower cost than building a replacement.