A first-of-its-kind mission to raise the orbit of NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is poised for launch no earlier than Thursday, July 2, 5:09 a.m. EDT

The Swift Observatory, launched in 2004, has been falling back to Earth due to recent higher-than-usual solar activity.

A salvage operation is set to launch as early as Tuesday to boost the Swift Observatory to a higher orbit.

NASA is executing an unprecedented, first-of-its-kind rescue mission to save the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a highly successful 21-year-old space telescope that is rapidly…