GLIMPSE II: Galactic Plane Infrared Point Source Catalog

The GLIMPSE II Epoch1 Catalog is a subset of point source data from the Galactic Legacy Infrared Mid-Plane Survey Extraordinaire, produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. It contains infrared observations of the central region of the Galaxy, with latitude coverage varying from ±1° to ±2° and excluding the Galactic center. The catalog is derived from two-epoch observations taken in September 2005 and April 2006, with sources requiring a signal-to-noise > 5 in at least one band.

Use Cases

• Identify and catalog infrared point sources based on signal-to-noise criteria mentioned in the description.
• Study stellar variability using the two-epoch observation data taken six months apart.
• Analyze the structure and density of stars in the Galactic plane based on the described latitude and longitude coverage.
• Compare source photometry between the more stringent Catalog and the broader Archive as described.

Strengths

• Observations consist of two 1.2-second integrations per position in the first epoch and a single 1.2-second integration six months later, providing temporal data.
• Photometric uncertainty is typically less than 0.3 magnitudes for included sources.
• Coverage is detailed, spanning longitudes ±10° of the Galactic center with variable latitude bands.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The catalog excludes the Galactic center region (l=±1°, b=±0.75°) observed by a separate program.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Infrared imaging from the Spitzer Space Telescope's GLIMPSEII survey.

Time Range

Observations from September 2005 and April 2006.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 19:26:52.876880; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Central region of the Milky Way Galaxy, longitudes ±10°, with variable latitude coverage.