NEOWISE — LLMpedia

NEOWISE
NASA/JPL-Caltech · Public domain · source
Name	NEOWISE
Mission type	Asteroid survey, infrared astronomy
Operator	Wright Laboratory, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA
Launch date	December 14, 2009
Launch vehicle	Delta II
Launch site	Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
Manufacturer	Ball Aerospace, Boeing
Orbit	Low Earth orbit
Instruments	Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer telescope

Contents

NEOWISE The project repurposed a space-based infrared observatory to conduct an all-sky survey emphasizing small bodies such as comets and asteroids. The program built on heritage from missions like IRAS, Spitzer Space Telescope, Akari, and involved collaborations with institutions including Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech, and NASA centers. NEOWISE produced catalogs used by researchers at Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, European Space Agency, and planetary defense teams coordinated with United States Air Force and international observatories.

Mission overview

NEOWISE began as a post-primary mission phase of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer to exploit cryogen-depleted operations for near-Earth object characterization. Project planning referenced lessons from Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking, LINEAR, Catalina Sky Survey, and survey strategies employed by Pan-STARRS and Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Leadership and oversight involved NASA Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters, and scientific review panels including members from Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The spacecraft was originally the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer built by Ball Aerospace and integrated by teams at Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Lockheed Martin. The observatory carried a cooled 40-cm telescope and focal plane arrays using detectors similar to those on Spitzer Space Telescope and IRAS. Instrumentation included the 3.4 and 4.6 μm bands repurposed for post-cryogenic operations, with on-orbit pointing, guidance, and thermal control systems derived from designs used on Galaxy Evolution Explorer and Hubble Space Telescope subsystems. Ground communications used networks coordinated with Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex and facilities at White Sands Complex.

NEOWISE delivered infrared measurements that enabled size and albedo estimates for populations studied by teams at Harvard University, Caltech, University of Arizona, MIT, and University of Hawai'i. Catalogs included discoveries and characterizations of thousands of minor planets, building on surveys by LINEAR, Catalina Sky Survey, and Pan-STARRS. Notable results were improved diameters for objects previously observed by IRAS and Akari, and detection of comets with activity monitored by observers at European Southern Observatory, Keck Observatory, Mauna Kea Observatories, and amateur networks affiliated with International Astronomical Union. NEOWISE contributed to follow-up campaigns coordinated with Minor Planet Center and supported impact risk assessments used by NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office and international partners such as European Space Agency and United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.

NEOWISE data processing pipelines adapted software developed at Jet Propulsion Laboratory and utilized algorithms from projects like Two Micron All Sky Survey and Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Data products were archived and distributed through centers including Infrared Science Archive and accessed by researchers at NASA/IPAC, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, and European Space Agency archives. Teams used processing techniques similar to those applied in Spitzer Space Telescope data reduction and cross-matched catalogs with databases maintained by the Minor Planet Center and observatory archives at Space Telescope Science Institute. Calibration exploited standards from Caldwell catalog comparisons and photometric systems referenced by Two Micron All Sky Survey.

The mission influenced studies of asteroid size-frequency distributions conducted by groups at California Institute of Technology, University of Colorado Boulder, Ohio State University, and University of California, Berkeley. NEOWISE results underpinned models used by researchers associated with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and informed mission planning at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory for proposals to rendezvous or sample small bodies similar to targets of OSIRIS-REx, Hayabusa2, and Dawn. Contributions affected policy discussions at United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and operational planning at NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office and Federal Emergency Management Agency when assessing risk mitigation options. The dataset enabled cross-disciplinary work linking teams at Smithsonian Institution, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, and University College London.

The observatory launched in 2009 aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and completed its primary cryogenic mission before entering a post-cryogenic phase repurposed as NEOWISE. Later operations transitioned to survey modes coordinated by NASA teams, with extended mission approvals and support from Jet Propulsion Laboratory management and scientific review boards at NASA Headquarters. Data releases occurred in coordination with archival centers at NASA/IPAC and updates to the Minor Planet Center database. As of the mission's extended operations, scientists from institutions such as Caltech, Harvard University, University of Arizona, European Space Agency, and Jet Propulsion Laboratory continue to analyze NEOWISE products for studies in planetary science and infrared astronomy.

Category:NASA spacecraft Category:Infrared telescopes Category:Minor planet surveys