NASA's aging Swift telescope, which observed explosions across the universe, is leaving orbit and will soon fall to Earth. According to a forecast from the U.S. Space Force, this will happen around October 30, 2026. An earlier attempt to save the spacecraft failed.
Most of the observatory, which weighs one and a half tons, is expected to burn up in the atmosphere. However, according to Brad Cenko, the mission's chief scientist, some fragments may survive the fall. These include parts made of tungsten, which is denser than lead, and sections of the mirrors.
Most likely, the debris will fall into the ocean, but the possible impact zone includes parts of Africa, Australia, India, Southeast Asia, and Central and South America. The U.S. Space Force is tracking the telescope's descent trajectory.
The Swift observatory was launched on November 20, 2004, to search for gamma-ray bursts and supernovae, among the most powerful explosions in the universe. Increased solar activity in recent years accelerated the spacecraft's descent. A year ago, NASA hired Katalyst Space for a rescue mission, but its robotic vehicle, Link, ran into problems and could not get close to the telescope. In September, the rescue robot itself fell to Earth.
After the rescue operation was called off, Swift resumed observations and managed to detect several more cosmic events. However, by the end of October it had sunk too low to remain stable, and its systems were shut down. Over its 22 years of operation, the telescope recorded more than 2,000 gamma-ray bursts and 1,400 stellar explosions. Its distinguishing feature was the ability to swiftly turn toward new events in space, which is how it got its name, meaning "quick" or "swift."
John Nousek of Pennsylvania State University, who led the operations team, said in an email that scientists hope to apply the lessons learned from Swift's successful work to build next-generation space missions, so as to speed up our discoveries about the universe.
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