NASA's Rs 283.8-crore Plan to Save Falling Satellite from Earth Crash

• NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, orbiting for two decades, is falling out of low-Earth orbit due to increased solar activity.
• NASA signed a $30 million (Rs 283.8 crore) deal with Katalyst Space Technologies to rescue the satellite.
• Katalyst Space Technologies is building a robotic spacecraft to dock with Swift, push it to a higher altitude (550 km), and extend its mission by a decade.
• The mission aims to reboost Swift from its current average altitude below 400 km to 550 km, prolonging its vital gamma-ray burst observations.
• Experts highlight Swift's importance for astrophysics, as it's the only facility providing rapid follow-up on powerful cosmic explosions.