The Swift Observatory’s demise came after the failure of a long-shot mission to save the telescope by boosting its orbit.
One of NASA’s premier space telescopes plunged to Earth on Wednesday, ending its 22-year investigation of the universe’s biggest explosions.
The Swift Observatory’s demise came less than three months after a long-shot rescue mission failed.
The U.S. Space Force confirmed Swift’s re-entry near Indonesia after tracking its sinking orbit, the result of intense solar activity the past few years.
NASA hired a private company to whip together an orbit-boosting effort, but Katalyst Space’s three-armed robotic craft ran into trouble following its July launch and came crashing down in September.
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