NASA has called off the mission to save its sinking Swift space telescope, dooming the observatory to a fiery reentry later this year. The spacecraft is now expected to plunge back to Earth and disintegrate in the atmosphere.
The Swift Observatory is tasked with studying some of the most powerful explosions in the universe. NASA had hoped to prevent the telescope from breaking apart, but those hopes were dashed when the rescue mission encountered problems.
With the rescue mission now called off, the telescope is expected to burn up during its descent.