Physical Parameters of Asteroids Estimated from the WISE 3 Band Data and NEOWISE Post-Cryogenic Survey

TL;DR

This paper discusses the NEOWISE mission's enhanced data processing and its results in detecting and characterizing over 158,000 minor planets, including NEOs and the first Earth Trojan, using infrared data.

Contribution

It provides new thermal parameter estimates for asteroids detected during the NEOWISE 3-band cryogenic and post-cryogenic surveys, including the first Earth Trojan.

Findings

Detected over 158,000 minor planets in infrared wavelengths.

Identified approximately 6,500 Main Belt asteroids and 88 NEOs.

Discovered the first known Earth Trojan asteroid.

Abstract

Enhancements to the science data processing pipeline of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Explorer (WISE) mission, collectively known as NEOWISE, resulted in the detection of $>$158,000 minor planets in four infrared wavelengths during the fully cryogenic portion of the mission. Following the depletion of its cryogen, NASA's Planetary Science Directorate funded a four month extension to complete the survey of the inner edge of the Main Asteroid Belt and to detect and discover near-Earth objects (NEOs). This extended survey phase, known as the NEOWISE Post-Cryogenic Survey, resulted in the detection of $\sim$6500 large Main Belt asteroids and 88 NEOs in its 3.4 and 4.6 $\mu$m channels. During the Post-Cryogenic Survey, NEOWISE discovered and detected a number of asteroids co-orbital with the Earth and Mars, including the first known Earth Trojan. We present preliminary thermal fits for these and other NEOs detected during the 3-Band Cryogenic and Post-Cryogenic Surveys.