Data Set Overview : The Midcourse Space Experiment (MSX) satellite was a Ballistic Missile Defense Organization long-duration measurement platform that collected data on Earth, Earth limb, and celestial backgrounds from April 1996 through February 1997. The primary celestial background objective of MSX was to complete the census of the infrared sky. To this end, MSX surveyed those areas of the sky either missed by IRAS or in which the IRAS sensitivity was degraded by confusion. A description of the results of the MSX survey may be found in Price et al. (2001) Astron. J. 121, 2819-2842 [PRICEETAL2001].  During the mission, many asteroids were serendipitously observed. Essentially the same procedures that were used to create the Supplemental IRAS Minor Planet Survey (SIMPS) (Tedesco et al. 2002, AJ123, 1056) [TEDESCOETAL2002A] were used to create the MSX Infrared Minor Planet Survey (MIMPS). A full description of MIMPS may be found in Tedesco et al. 2002, AJ 124, 583 [TEDESCOETAL2002B].  The data set consists of a sightings file with a complete list of MSX asteroid sightings, a diameters and albedos file listing results for each asteroid (including singleton as well as multiple sightings), and a table of the filter bandpasses.

This data set underwent external peer review on May 20, 2004.