LINK to Launch June 30 to Raise Swift to 370 Miles as Re-entry Looms This Fall
Updated
Updated · Science@NASA · Jun 26
LINK to Launch June 30 to Raise Swift to 370 Miles as Re-entry Looms This Fall
3 articles · Updated · Science@NASA · Jun 26
Summary
June 30 at 6:23 a.m. EDT is the earliest launch slot for Katalyst Space’s LINK mission from Kwajalein Atoll, aiming to rendezvous with NASA’s Swift Observatory and lift it over several months.
Swift needs to stay above about 185 miles, but increased solar activity accelerated atmospheric drag and pushed orbital forecasts toward that threshold as early as July, threatening re-entry later this year.
880-pound LINK will fly on a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL, then spend several weeks commissioning before using ion thrusters and three robotic arms to grapple Swift and raise it to nearly 370 miles.
NASA awarded Katalyst the contract in September, giving the company less than a year to design and build a servicer for a spacecraft never meant to be serviced.
NASA says the high-risk mission could extend a 2004 observatory’s life more cheaply than replacing it while testing a commercial model for robotic satellite servicing.