WASHINGTON - The mission of mapping the sky using spacecraft Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) managed to find at least 33 000 new asteroids residing in the region between Mars and Jupiter and 20 comets, and 134 other outer space objects near the Earth.
All these findings can now be accessed online at the site WISE. For amateur astronomers, this data can be accessed by clicking WISE gallery.
Pete Schultz, astronauts from Brown University who was involved in this project, said, "These findings can now be accessed spectacular that this proves that we have many new neighbors."
"Latest Catalog of space rock that helps increase our knowledge about the contents of the solar system,"
Edward Wright of UCLA, who led the investigation said, "Starting today, thousands of eyes will see the WISE data and I expect surprises."
While William Keel, an astronomer at the University of Alabama, have used these data to kuasar detection.
WISE Space Telescope worth USD320 million, was launched in December 2009.
In October 2010, the cooling hydrogen in the spacecraft was exhausted and could only extend the mission for four months. Starting in February 2011, WISE entered a period of hibernation.
During the 14 months since the launch of the mission, WISE managed to capture 2.5 million images from its orbit. The data was released online today only 57 percent of which have been observed, whereas other data will be released in 2012.
WISE also can help scientists to explain the size and composition of the rocks found in the new space.
WISE mission managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The mission is a continuation of the mission of mapping the sky using infrared waves, the Infrared Astronomical Satellite, launched in 1983
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