Astrophysics

Swift

Completed

Image: NASA E/PO, Sonoma State University/Aurore Simonnet · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Launched: 20 Nov 200417:16:01 UTC
End declared: 23 Oct 2026
Duration: 21 years 11 months
Destinations: Low Earth orbit

A NASA observatory that caught gamma-ray bursts and turned within about a minute to observe their afterglows in X-ray, ultraviolet and visible light. Built for a two-year mission, it observed more than 2,000 bursts over nearly 22 years, until atmospheric drag pulled it too low to point steadily.

Milestones

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20052010201520202025

Spacecraft

Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory

Telescope

Completed

Fast-slewing satellite with a wide-field burst detector and two narrow-field telescopes.

Launch mass: 1,470 kg
Size: 2.4 m × 1.7 m, span 5.5 m
Power: Solar
Built by: General Dynamics
End declared: 23 Oct 2026
Designator: 2004-047A

Mission details from science.nasa.gov.