NASA reactivates WISE spacecraft for asteroid search
Posted: Thu, Aug 22, 2013, 8:01 AM ET (1201 GMT)
NASA announced Wednesday it is reactivating a dormant space telescope to resume its search for near Earth objects (NEOs). The Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft will be turned back on next month for a three-year mission to search for and study NEOs under a project called NEOWISE. Scientists expect WISE's 40-centimeter telescope and instruments will be able to discover 150 NEOs and characterize 2,000 others, data which could help NASA identify a target for its proposed asteroid redirect mission. NASA launched WISE in late 2009 on a more general infrared astronomy mission, observing stars and galaxies as well as asteroids during a primary mission that lasted until February 2011. The spacecraft's survey of asteroids then, also called NEOWISE, led to the discovery of 135 NEOs and 34,000 main belt asteroids.
NASA announced Wednesday it is reactivating a dormant space telescope to resume its search for near Earth objects (NEOs). The Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft will be turned back on next month for a three-year mission to search for and study NEOs under a project called NEOWISE. Scientists expect WISE's 40-centimeter telescope and instruments will be able to discover 150 NEOs and characterize 2,000 others, data which could help NASA identify a target for its proposed asteroid redirect mission. NASA launched WISE in late 2009 on a more general infrared astronomy mission, observing stars and galaxies as well as asteroids during a primary mission that lasted until February 2011. The spacecraft's survey of asteroids then, also called NEOWISE, led to the discovery of 135 NEOs and 34,000 main belt asteroids.
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