NASA reported October 23 that its Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory had concluded operations as its orbit declined. The account says the spacecraft reached an altitude of about 171 miles on October 20, where increased atmospheric drag prevented it from compensating effectively and it entered safe mode.

The operations team at Penn State in University Park, Pennsylvania, then sent a command ending operations in preparation for atmospheric re-entry. NASA expected re-entry in the following weeks; the announcement did not confirm that it had already occurred or establish an exact impact time.

A commercial servicing effort had previously ended without attempting to raise Swift’s orbit. Science observations subsequently resumed, allowing the observatory to examine hundreds of targets, including stellar remnants, active black holes and comets. NASA says that return to observing also increased drag on the spacecraft.

The operational ending leaves an accumulated scientific record for further research. The October 23 publication reports the earlier shutdown sequence, rather than a new shutdown on today’s edition date. Any later re-entry status requires a separate update from the responsible agencies.