August 25, 2026 – Below are the words of our researcher Sergio Campana, PI of the Italian group and responsible for the calibration of the XRT telescope.
After nearly 23 exciting years of great discoveries, “our”
satellite Swift is about to leave us.
Unfortunately, the mission that NASA had, in record time, approved,
designed, and launched (LINK, this is the name) has run out of fuel, and
therefore will not be able to attempt to return Swift to a higher orbit,
protected from friction with the Earth’s atmosphere.
Here is one of the many news items
https://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/objects/heapow/heapow.html
We have decided to resume Swift’s
observation activities for these last few months, albeit on a limited basis (at least initially),
so as to finish off its final days in glory, before its reentry into the
atmosphere, which will occur in the next 3-4 months.
Swift was perhaps the observatory’s first major project,
led personally. Credit goes to Guido Chincarini.
He nurtured one, perhaps two, generations of scientists and
literally revolutionized our understanding of transient sources.
There will be time to remember and celebrate these great discoveries.
With a hint of sadness, let’s fully enjoy these last flashes of Swift.
