COBE DIRBE Point Source Catalog: Infrared Photometry for 11,788 Bright Sources

11,788 of the brightest near and mid-infrared point sources in the sky are cataloged with photometry in 10 bands from 1.25 to 240 microns. The catalog was constructed by NASA's COBE mission from a 10-month cryogenic mission in 1989-1990, providing excellent temporal coverage with 100-1900 measurements per object. It includes variability information, confusion flags, and cross-references to IRAS, 2MASS, and MSX catalogs.

Use Cases

• Analyzing infrared variability of stars based on the catalog's reported amplitudes of variation.
• Cross-matching and validating source properties using the included IRAS, 2MASS, and SIMBAD cross-references.
• Studying the population of bright infrared point sources at high Galactic latitudes based on the stated completeness limits.
• Investigating source confusion in large-beam infrared surveys based on the companion flags included for each source.

Strengths

• Contains 11,788 sources with infrared photometry across 10 wavelength bands.
• Provides excellent temporal coverage with 100-1900 independent measurements per object from the 10-month mission.
• Includes cross-referenced data from other major catalogs (IRAS, 2MASS, MSX) and SIMBAD spectral types.
• Offers specific completeness flux density and magnitude limits at high Galactic latitudes for six wavelengths.

Limitations

• Completeness is less certain at longer wavelengths and in the Galactic Plane due to beam size and extended emission.
• The catalog was constructed from a pre-selected target list, not a blind survey, which may introduce selection bias.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) mission.

Collection Method

Data gathered by the Diffuse Infrared Background Experiment (DIRBE) instrument during its 10-month cryogenic mission in 1989-1990.

Time Range

Observations from the 1989-1990 mission.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 19:38:03.008211; freshness should be verified.

Geography

All-sky coverage.