NASA is inviting industry to propose ways to raise the orbit of the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a workhorse mission launched in 2004 that revolutionized our understanding of gamma-ray bursts. With atmospheric drag intensifying at low Earth orbit during the current solar cycle, Swift’s roughly 370-kilometer altitude has become a liability. A targeted reboost could buy years of additional observing time for its three-instrument suite, and NASA wants commercial partners to show how to do it safely and affordably.
Why Swift Needs a Reboost
Swift was built to catch cataclysmic bursts at the moment they flare, then pivot within minutes to capture the afterglow across X-ray, ultraviolet, and optical wavelengths. Its Burst Alert Telescope, X-Ray Telescope, and UV/Optical Telescope have enabled thousands of peer-reviewed studies and more than 1,700 gamma-ray burst detections. The science is still first-rate—but the atmosphere is not cooperating.
During peaks in solar activity, the upper atmosphere puffs up and increases drag on satellites in low Earth orbit. Models such as NRLMSISE-00 show density at 350–400 kilometers can jump by factors of two to five during solar maxima, dramatically shortening orbital lifetimes. Without assistance, a spacecraft the size of Swift—about 1.5 metric tons—can lose altitude quickly, pushing it toward premature reentry.
Inside NASA’s Call to Industry
NASA is treating Swift as a real-world testbed for on-orbit servicing at low altitude. Rather than issuing a one-size-fits-all solution, the agency is soliciting concepts from companies that can rendezvous with, inspect, and gently reboost an existing spacecraft. That includes evaluating whether ongoing commercial demonstration missions could be adapted to provide a measured push to a higher, more stable orbit.
Among the firms in the conversation are players advancing autonomous rendezvous and docking. Starfish Space, for example, has been maturing inspection and proximity-operations technology aimed at future servicing vehicles. NASA’s interest aligns with broader efforts across its Space Technology Mission Directorate and the Satellite Servicing Projects Division to seed a marketplace for routine life-extension and reconfiguration services in orbit.
The agency is not crowdsourcing rocket science. This is a targeted request to qualified providers who can deliver flight-proven hardware, rigorous safety analyses, and a credible operations plan tailored to a sensitive observatory.
What an Orbit-Raise Would Involve
At Swift’s altitude, even a modest climb of 50–150 kilometers can make a big difference, reducing drag and extending lifetime by years. The required delta‑v is typically on the order of tens of meters per second—well within reach of a small tug or a compact propulsion add-on—but the challenge is doing it without jeopardizing the spacecraft.
Any visiting vehicle must execute precise rendezvous and hold points, approach along safe corridors, and avoid thruster plume impingement on Swift’s optics and star trackers. Non-toxic propellants, such as the AF‑M315E “green” monopropellant demonstrated by NASA’s Green Propellant Infusion Mission, are likely to be favored to minimize contamination risk. Teams will also need to prove they can maintain Swift’s attitude constraints during contact, protect its thermal environment, and coordinate collision avoidance with the U.S. Space Force’s space traffic management.
Multiple architectures are on the table: a free-flying tug that docks and performs a series of burns; a detachable “kick module” that bolts to a standardized interface and remains with the spacecraft; or an inspection-first approach that validates proximity operations before committing to a gentle push. What will matter to NASA reviewers is reliability, controllability, and a clear path to flight readiness on the timeline Swift requires.
A Test Case for On-Orbit Servicing
If successful, Swift’s reboost could become a reference mission for future life-extension at low Earth orbit. Most commercial servicing to date—such as Northrop Grumman’s Mission Extension Vehicle—has focused on geostationary satellites. But LEO presents different dynamics: faster orbital periods, denser traffic, higher drag, and stringent contamination constraints for science payloads.
The timing is notable. Agencies worldwide are backing inspection and debris-removal demos—JAXA’s ADRAS‑J and ESA’s ClearSpace-1 among them—while NASA has studied commercial concepts to reboost other flagship assets like the Hubble Space Telescope. Proving a safe, cost-effective reboost for Swift would strengthen the case for using commercial providers to extend the lives of high-value government satellites rather than writing off perfectly healthy instruments when propellant runs low or drag mounts.
What’s at Stake for Science
Swift still fills a unique niche: instant localization of cosmic explosions and rapid handoffs to a global network of observatories on the ground and in space. Its agility has enabled discoveries ranging from the most distant known gamma-ray bursts to counterparts of gravitational-wave events, stitching together the multi-messenger universe in near real time.
The telescope isn’t out of ideas—just altitude. A carefully executed orbit raise would preserve a prolific science return, validate essential in-space servicing capability at low Earth orbit, and provide a playbook for keeping other aging but capable spacecraft above the drag. For NASA and its industry partners, it’s a chance to turn a looming problem into a long-term asset.
