WASHINGTON - A spacecraft designed to give a dying NASA satellite one last boost has passed its environmental tests, clearing the way for a launch as soon as June. Because nothing says 'urgent' like a space telescope slowly falling back to Earth.
NASA and spacecraft manufacturer Katalyst Space announced May 8 that Katalyst’s Link spacecraft successfully completed a series of environmental tests at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Those tests included vibration tests to mimic the shaking Link will endure during launch on a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket, plus a stint in a thermal vacuum chamber where it deployed a robotic arm and fired its electric thrusters. You know, the usual.
With the tests done, the spacecraft is back at Katalyst’s facility in Colorado for final prelaunch preparations. It will then ship to NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility for integration with the Pegasus rocket in early June, with a launch projected later in the month. Mark your calendars, assuming the satellite hasn't already turned into a shooting star.
The mission is on a tight schedule to reboost NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a gamma-ray observatory in low Earth orbit. Swift's orbit is decaying due to atmospheric drag, with reentry expected as soon as late this year. Because nothing says 'observatory' like 'plummeting toward the atmosphere.'
NASA awarded Katalyst a $30 million contract last September for Link, repurposing a spacecraft originally planned for a demonstration mission to instead grapple Swift and raise its orbit. Talk about a career change.
That tight schedule required trade-offs. “We’re in an unusual situation where the schedule dictates how much risk we’re willing to accept, rather than the other way around,” Kieran Wilson, Link’s principal investigator at Katalyst, said in a NASA statement. “The clock is ticking on Swift’s descent, so we have to find a balance between testing and problem-solving that gives the mission the best chance of success.” Translation: We're winging it, but with math.
“The Swift boost attempt is a fast, high-risk, high-reward mission,” said John Van Eepoel, mission director for Swift at NASA Goddard. “Katalyst has gotten to this point in just eight months, and we’re glad they were able to use NASA’s facilities to test Link and draw on our expertise to help tackle questions that popped up along the way.” Because nothing says 'expertise' like 'answering questions while the clock runs out.'
Adding to the challenge: Swift’s orbit is decaying faster than planned. In January, project officials said the spacecraft’s orbit was expected to drop below 300 kilometers - the altitude below which the reboost mission is no longer feasible - between mid-October 2026 and January 2027. Revised models weeks later moved that deadline up to as soon as late May, before Link could even launch. So NASA took steps to reconfigure the spacecraft, shutting down most science operations to reorient it and minimize drag. In April, controllers turned off the one remaining instrument, the Burst Alert Telescope, to reduce power consumption so Swift’s arrays could be repositioned to further reduce drag. Because nothing says 'observatory' like 'lights out.'
“I would feel really bad if we hadn’t changed the operating mode for Swift,” Shawn Domagal-Goldman, director of NASA’s astrophysics division, said in an April 21 interview, while the environmental tests of Link were in progress. “Because of that, we have enough time for this team to get to the launch pad.” He said then that should Link make it through those environmental tests, “I will feel really good about that team getting to the launch pad in time to boost Swift.”
He noted, though, that the reboost attempt is high risk, including factors beyond the mission’s control, like the rate Swift’s orbit decays from drag. “It’s a matter of the uncertainty the universe throws our way,” he said. “Even if they do everything right, nature could still throw a curveball and make it not doable.” Because the universe is a jerk.
In short: NASA is trying to save a satellite with a spaceship that hasn't launched yet, while the satellite keeps falling faster. What could possibly go wrong?