Swift rescue spacecraft LINK loses two reaction wheels, starts to spin
· TexaHub · Space & Aerospace, Robotics, Risks & Opportunities
Katalyst's LINK, sent to boost NASA's decaying Swift observatory, is slowing an uncontrolled spin; NASA says paths to a boost remain, with approach now expected around late August.
What went wrong
The commercial mission to save NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory has hit a serious setback. NASA said on 28 July that over the weekend Katalyst Space's LINK servicing spacecraft "experienced issues with attitude control, causing the spacecraft to spin and resulting in sporadic communications" [1]. A preliminary investigation found two of LINK's three reaction wheels not operable and "some loss of functionality" in its cold gas thruster system, though its other major subsystems were working and it remained power positive [1].
LINK launched on 3 July on the final flight of Northrop Grumman's air-launched Pegasus XL rocket [4]. On 15 July NASA reported commissioning was about halfway done and that early communications and attitude-control issues, including a problem with one reaction wheel, had been fixed with software patches [2]. Whether the two episodes are related is not yet clear from NASA's updates, which have not described a root cause.
Recovery so far
In a 31 July update, NASA said thruster burns had cut LINK's spin from approximately 9 degrees per second to less than 4 degrees per second, and that teams had found "there are still potential paths forward for a boost" [3]. Katalyst plans to update LINK's guidance, navigation and control for its new configuration before NASA and the company evaluate revised plans to approach and capture Swift [1]. LINK is now expected to approach Swift around the end of August [3].
Why it matters
Swift was not built to be serviced and cannot raise its own orbit, which has been dropping as solar activity increases drag [4]. The plan was for LINK to grab the observatory with three robotic arms and use ion thrusters to raise the pair back to about 600 km over several months [4]. The whole mission cost NASA $30 million, and Katalyst was selected in September 2025, leaving less than a year to design, build and test the spacecraft [4]. Space.com reports Swift's own cost at launch in 2004 differently in two articles, as $500 million and as $250 million [4][5].
The case is a test of NASA's appetite for fast, low-cost commercial servicing. Losing two of three reaction wheels makes precise proximity operations harder, and a capture attempt with a degraded spacecraft carries risk to the observatory it is meant to save. How NASA weighs that risk against Swift's decaying orbit over the coming weeks will be an early signal for future rescue-style contracts.
Sources
[1] Commissioning Update for Spacecraft to Boost NASA's Swift — NASA, 28 Jul 2026
[2] Spacecraft Commissioning On Track for Mission to Boost NASA's Swift — NASA, 15 Jul 2026
[3] Efforts Continue to Stabilize LINK Spacecraft for NASA's Swift Boost — NASA, 31 Jul 2026
[4] NASA launches rescue mission to save Swift space telescope from burning up in Earth's atmosphere — Space.com, 3 Jul 2026
[5] NASA launched this spacecraft to save a space telescope. Now, it needs saving too — Space.com, 29 Jul 2026