Overview
- LINK, the Katalyst-built servicer that launched in July, developed attitude and thruster control problems and went into a spin, prompting NASA and Katalyst to cancel the planned grapple-and-boost attempt.
- Although the capture was called off, LINK fired all three of its electric thrusters, deployed its three robotic arms, adjusted its orbit to within about 7.5–9 miles of Swift, and took close-range photos to collect engineering data.
- NASA restarted two of Swift’s three instruments—the Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope and the X-ray Telescope—to collect observations now that the boost is off the table while the Burst Alert Telescope remains powered down for recovery work.
- Mission models place Swift’s uncontrolled reentry between October and late December 2026 and expect LINK to reenter within weeks to months, with roughly one to two months of useful operations likely at the current ~185-mile altitude.
- Teams will maximize last observations and the technology data from LINK to inform future commercial servicing efforts, and the loss of Swift would create a near-term gap in rapid alerts for short-lived high-energy events.