SEOUL, Nov. 4 (Yonhap) -- A defunct NASA telescope is expected to fall back to Earth on Wednesday evening, but it is highly unlikely the observatory will crash near the Korean Peninsula, South Korea's space agency said.
The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, also known as the Swift telescope, is projected to reenter the Earth's atmosphere at around 8:46 p.m., the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) said, citing an analysis from the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI). The margin of error is two hours, it added.
Launched in 2004, the 1.5-ton telescope had been operating for the past 22 years on its mission to observe high-energy gamma-ray bursts.
The observatory, however, had been slowly falling out of orbit, and NASA in July attempted to send a private satellite to bump the telescope so it can regain some altitude, but the plan failed. Eventually, the telescope had reached the point of no return and was shut down on Oct. 20.
KASA said it plans to continue monitoring the Swift telescope's movements with the KASI, adding that most of the telescope's body is expected to burn up in the atmosphere, but some components will likely fall into the ocean.
The special rescue spacecraft LINK, which flew on a failed mission designed to extend the life of NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory awaits encapsulation aboard a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia in the United States, in this file photo provided by Reuters on June 8, 2026. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
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Source: Yonhap News · Kang Jae-eun
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