Engineers race to save stricken LINK rescue spacecraft before it's too late

space.com Aug 8, 2026

Engineers race to save stricken LINK rescue spacecraft before it’s too late

Curated by Shubham · TechCapsules · Aug 8, 2026

AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication

Katalyst Space Technologies launched the LINK rescue spacecraft on July 3 to rendezvous with NASA’s Swift telescope and boost it to a higher orbit before atmospheric drag forces it out of service. Three weeks later, LINK began spinning at 9°/s, lost two reaction wheels, and experienced a communications outage. Engineers used electric‑propulsion burns to reduce the spin to 1.47°/s and are uploading new attitude‑control software to stabilize the craft and align it with Swift. The mission remains critical as Swift’s orbit is expected to drop below 186 miles by October.

💡 Why It Matters

· Swift’s continued operation hinges on LINK’s success; without the rescue, the telescope would lose its ability to study gamma‑ray bursts, erasing a decade of scientific data.

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