Race to Save Swift: private-led rescue mission in record time

NASA and Katalyst Space Technologies are racing to save the Swift gamma-ray observatory by building the Link servicing spacecraft to capture Swift and boost it back to a safe orbit, launching aboard Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus XL on a record-fast timeline. The mission relies on streamlined contracting and aggressive testing under time pressure, potentially setting a blueprint for rapid, private-public space missions, though Swift continues to decay in low Earth orbit.