A venerable X-ray telescope in Earth orbit is scheduled for a rescue soon. The Swift observatory has been losing altitude, and would spiral to Earth by the end of the year without a boost. That boost will be provided by a spacecraft developed by Katalyst Space Technologies. The rescue craft (left panel) will rendezvous with Swift, spend a few days checking out, then latch on to the observatory (center). It then will fire its engine to return Swift to a higher orbit, where it could continue to monitor the universe for years. [Katalyst Space Technologies]
Find out more in our radio program entitled Space Rescue.