Share to ClassroomNASA Robot to Save Swift Telescope
NASA (the US space agency) has begun a $30million mission to save an old space telescope before it falls to Earth. It hired an American company, Katalyst, to send a robot spacecraft called Link. Link will push the Swift telescope into a higher, safer orbit— the path it follows around Earth. The robot is about the size of a small fridge. It has three arms with grippers to grab the telescope.
Swift was launched in 2004 to study bursts of energy in space. It has been falling faster because of strong solar activity from the Sun. This heats the air high above Earth and pulls satellites down. Swift now orbits 224 miles (360 kilometers) up. It must stay above 185 miles (300 kilometers) for the rescue to work. To slow the fall, NASA turned off all of Swift's instruments in February.
If the plan works, Link will take about three months to catch Swift and lift its orbit. NASA says the mission is worth it, because it can not afford a new telescope. Swift can turn quickly to see sudden events, such as exploding stars. Its next robot might even help the bigger Hubble telescope around 2028.
