✉news ScienceScience first seen 1 d ago, last 1 d ago, peak #22
NASA's Swift Observatory Stops Science Operations as Orbit Decays
Original: NASA Swift Ends Science Below 171 Miles [2026]
NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory has ended its science operations after its orbit decayed below 171 miles (275 km) altitude, where atmospheric drag makes stable pointing impossible. The X-ray and ultraviolet telescope, launched in 2004 to study gamma-ray bursts, is expected to reenter Earth's atmosphere and burn up, with most of the spacecraft expected to be destroyed.
Why now: The long-running mission's end of operations marks the close of a two-decade astronomy program, drawing attention to its scientific legacy.
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- NASA Swift Ends Science Below 171 Miles [2026] · shattered.io
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