# Nasa telescope launched in 2004 to plunge back to Earth after failed rescue mission

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/nasa-telescope-launched-in-2004-to-plunge-back-to-earth-after-failed-rescue-mission/
- Published: 2026-11-03T19:50:27+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-03T23:03:16+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/nov/03/nasa-telescope-neil-gehrels-swift-observatory
- Topics: Art, Culture, Research, Science, Space, Technology, World

## Key points

- Swift is expected to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere on 4 November.
- Nasa puts the risk of harm at about 1 in 2,100.
- The observatory tracked more than 2,000 gamma-ray bursts.

## Summary

Nasa’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is expected to make an uncontrolled re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere on Wednesday, 4 November, after it lost the ability to steer and observe. Most of the spacecraft is expected to burn up, though some parts may reach the ground; Nasa says the risk of harm to anyone is about 1 in 2,100.

Launched in 2004 for a two-year mission, Swift operated for two decades and tracked more than 2,000 gamma-ray bursts, helping scientists study the universe’s most powerful explosions. It also recently observed a star being torn apart by a wandering supermassive black hole. A Nasa attempt to raise the observatory’s orbit last year failed, and it was about 171 miles above Earth when operations ended last month.

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