LINK by Katalyst Space: status and timeline

LINK

Show that a commercial robot can grab and move a government satellite that was never designed to be serviced, so ageing spacecraft can be saved instead of replaced.

ProtoStage 2 of 5

Mission over: never captured Swift after attitude failures; reentered Sep 2026 after 85 days in orbit.

Updated 17d agoChecked 11 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · Katalyst's first geostationary-orbit servicing mission (NEXUS)

NASA awards $30M Swift boost contract24 Sep 2025Complete.
LINK launched on Pegasus XL3 Jul 2026+1 mo~~originally Jun 2026~~Complete.
Attitude-control failures foundJul 2026Complete.
Capture and boost of Swift called offMissed · 19 Aug 2026Missed.
LINK deorbits and reenters24 Sep 2026Complete.

Most important updates

Upcoming

2027Katalyst's first geostationary-orbit servicing mission (NEXUS) (next)

Current obstacles

Failed reaction wheels and a stuck valveTwo of three wheels that point the craft died and a thruster valve stuck, sending LINK into a spin and ruling out a safe capture.
No second attempt for SwiftSwift's orbit keeps decaying and NASA expects it to reenter later in 2026, so the lessons go to Katalyst's next craft.

Physics limits

Electric thrust is gentleElectric thrusters are very fuel-efficient but push with about the weight of a sheet of paper, so raising a multi-tonne satellite takes weeks or months.
Low orbits lose height fastThin air at 300-400 km slows satellites, and drag grows sharply when solar activity heats and puffs up the upper atmosphere, shrinking the time to act.
Contact in orbit is unforgivingTwo craft moving at about 7.6 km/s must meet at near-zero relative speed; any small push sends the target tumbling, with no friction to stop it.

How it works

3 parts

Chase

Match orbits, then close in

LINK uses its thrusters to change height and timing until it shares Swift's orbit, then closes in slowly from kilometres to metres.

Grab

Three arms with pinching grippers

The plan was to hold Swift by its existing structure with three arms, since the telescope has no docking port.

Boost

Push the pair higher

Once attached, the electric thrusters would slowly lift both craft over months back to about 600 km, Swift's original height, where drag is far weaker.

Spec sheet

Spec	LINK
Robotic arms	3^R (reported)
Mass	About 400 kg^R (reported)
Electric thrusters (xenon)	3^R (reported)
Solar arrays	2, about 6 m each^R (reported)
NASA contract	$30M^R (reported)
Time in orbit	85 days^R (reported)
Closest approach to Swift	12-15 km^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

Update log

4 updates

About Katalyst Space

The team behind LINK

Katalyst Space

Robotic satellite servicing, LINK

Katalyst Space Technologies, based in Flagstaff, Arizona, builds robotic spacecraft that meet satellites in orbit to move, repair or upgrade them. Its LINK craft tried to rescue NASA's Swift observatory in 2026.

Won a $30M NASA contract in Sep 2025 to boost the decaying Swift observatory, and launched LINK about nine months later.
LINK spun out of control after launch, never captured Swift and reentered in Sep 2026, but tested its arms and thrusters.
Raised $12M in June 2026; next aims a servicing craft (NEXUS) at high geostationary orbit, planned for 2027.

katalystspace.com (opens katalystspace.com)Company profile →

Headquarters: United States
Status: Private
Valuation: private
Raised: $12M1 round
Last round: Seed-2 · $12MJun 2026
Works in: SpaceflightIn-space mobility
Coverage: 1 program · 5 updateslatest 17d agochecked 11 Oct
Lead investors: Geodesic Capital
Customers: NASA (opens nasa.gov)
Investors: Geodesic Capital (opens geodesiccap.com)
Suppliers: Northrop Grumman
People: Ghonhee Lee (opens katalystspace.com)CEOKieran WilsonLINK principal investigator

Spec

LINK

Robotic arms

3^R (reported)

Mass

About 400 kg^R (reported)

Electric thrusters (xenon)

3^R (reported)

Solar arrays

2, about 6 m each^R (reported)

NASA contract

$30M^R (reported)

Time in orbit

85 days^R (reported)

Closest approach to Swift

12-15 km^R (reported)

LINK

Milestones

Most important updates

Upcoming

Current obstacles

Physics limits

How it works

Match orbits, then close in

Three arms with pinching grippers

Push the pair higher

Spec sheet

Update log

Thu 24 Sep

Wed 19 Aug

Wed 29 Jul

Wed 24 Sep 2025

About Katalyst Space

Current obstacles

Physics limits

How it works

Match orbits, then close in

Three arms with pinching grippers

Push the pair higher

Spec sheet

Update log

Thu 24 Sep

Wed 19 Aug

Wed 29 Jul

Wed 24 Sep 2025

About Katalyst Space