NASA’s Swift telescope is back, but time is running out
NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory has resumed partial operations after being partially powered down to manage orbital drag. While two of its three instruments are back online, the team is working to restore the Burst Alert Telescope to continue tracking fleeting cosmic events.
Why it matters
Swift is a vital tool for astronomers to observe short-lived cosmic phenomena, and its continued operation is threatened by the lack of propulsion to maintain its orbit.
NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is back to studying the universe with two of its three science instruments after plans to raise the spacecraft into a higher orbit were scaled back.
The observatory's Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope and X-ray Telescope were switched back on Wednesday, Aug. 26. Both instruments had been shut down in February as part of an effort to reduce atmospheric drag and help Swift remain in orbit longer while NASA prepared for a possible orbital boost.
Swift's third instrument, the Burst Alert Telescope, has not yet resumed science operations. NASA stopped using it in April to lower the spacecraft's power needs, which allowed engineers to position Swift's solar panels in a way that further reduced drag. The team now expects to restore that instrument to data collection within the next few weeks.
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