NASA's doomed Swift space telescope restarts science work after rescue mission fails
31-08-2026 23:00 via space.com

NASA's doomed Swift space telescope restarts science work after rescue mission fails

NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is back to studying the universe after spending months in a low-drag configuration while awaiting an orbital rescue mission that ultimately fell short.Mission controllers restarted two of Swift's three science instruments — its X-ray Telescope (XRT) and Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope (UVOT) — on Aug. 26. Both instruments had been shut down in February as part of an effort to minimize atmospheric drag and keep the aging spacecraft in orbit long eno
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