Catalina Sky Survey
Leading survey for near‑Earth objects and comets.
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via Wikipedia: Catalina Sky Survey · see source
The Catalina Sky Survey (CSS) uses three telescopes at two sites in the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, Arizona, to hunt for comets and asteroids. Its primary mission is to find near‑Earth objects (NEOs)—including potentially hazardous ones—as part of NASA’s Near‑Earth Object Observations Program, which was established after a 1998 U.S. Congressional directive to locate large bodies that cross Earth’s orbit. The survey operates from Steward Observatory’s Catalina Station, with telescopes on Mount Lemmon (a 1.5‑meter instrument, MPC code G96, and a 1‑meter follow‑up telescope, MPC code I52) and Mount Bigelow (a 0.68‑meter Schmidt telescope, MPC code 703).
These instruments scan wide areas of the sky each clear night, using 30‑second exposures to detect faint, moving objects. Since 2005, CSS has been the most productive NEO discovery program, finding more than 25,000 minor planets and a large share of all known near‑Earth asteroids. The survey also gathers scientific data on main‑belt asteroid populations, cometary distribution at larger distances from the Sun, and potential targets for future space missions.
Notable discoveries include numerous comets and minor planets. The team is led by D. Carson Fuls of the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, with a roster that includes Stephen M. Larson, Alex R. Gibbs, Albert D. Grauer, and others. The survey’s southern counterpart, the Siding Spring Survey in Australia, ended in 2013 due to funding cuts. CSS also engages in educational outreach, such as working with Astronomy Camp, and runs two Zooniverse citizen‑science projects—Catalina Outer Solar System Survey, which looks for trans‑Neptunian objects, and The Daily Minor Planet, where volunteers help confirm asteroid detections.
Quick Facts
- Location
- Steward Observatory's Catalina Station, near Tucson, Arizona, United States
- Observatory codes
- 703 (0.68‑m Schmidt)
- G96 (1.5‑m telescope)
- I52 (1‑m follow‑up telescope)
- Primary mission
- Discovery of near‑Earth objects (NEOs) and comets
- Minor planets discovered
- over 25,000
Facts from the source article.
Mission
The Catalina Sky Survey contributes to the congressionally‑mandated goal of identifying objects 1 km or larger to a 90% confidence level. Beyond impact‑risk assessment, it improves knowledge of main‑belt population distribution, cometary distribution at larger perihelion distances, and the collisional history and transport of NEOs, and identifies potential targets for flight projects.
Techniques
CSS operates three telescopes in the Santa Catalina Mountains: a 1.5 m f/1.6 on Mount Lemmon (G96), a 68 cm f/1.7 Schmidt near Mount Bigelow (703), and a 1 m f/2.6 follow‑up telescope on Mount Lemmon (I52). The survey telescopes use identical thermo‑electrically cooled cameras (10,560×10,560 pixels) cooled to about −100 °C, providing fields of view of 5 square degrees (1.5 m) and nearly 20 square degrees (Schmidt). Nominal exposures are 30 seconds, reaching fainter than 21.5 V. The 1‑m follow‑up telescope uses a 2000×2000‑pixel CCD with a 0.3‑square‑degree field.
Starting in 2019, CSS also uses the 1.54 m Kuiper telescope on Mt. Bigelow for targeted follow‑up 7–12 nights per lunation. The survey operates every clear night except a few nights around full moon. Its southern counterpart, the Siding Spring Survey in Australia, ended in 2013.
Educational outreach
CSS has assisted Astronomy Camp by demonstrating NEO detection and contributed to an astrophotography exercise with the 2006 Adult Astronomy Camp that produced a picture featured on Astronomy Picture of the Day. The Zooniverse project Catalina Outer Solar System Survey engages volunteers to search for trans‑Neptunian objects in pre‑processed CSS images; volunteers who agree are cited as measurers in astrometry submissions to the Minor Planet Center.
Did You Know?
- The survey's cameras are cooled to approximately -100 °C so their dark current is about 1 electron per hour.
- CSS became the most prolific NEO survey in 2005, surpassing Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR).
- As of 2020, CSS is responsible for the discovery of 47% of the total known NEO population.
- The Zooniverse project The Daily Minor Planet has found new near-Earth objects including 2023 VN3, 2023 TW, 2024 SN3, 2025 HD3, and 2025 KU1.
More in Astronomical Surveys
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Catalina Sky Survey (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the , each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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