MSX6C Infrared Point Source Catalog

Version 2.3 of the Midcourse Space Experiment (MSX) Point Source Catalog (PSC), which supercedes the version (1.2) that was released in 1999, contains over 100,000 more sources than the previous version. The photometry is based on co-added image plates, as opposed to single-scan data, which results in improved sensitivity and hence reliability in the fluxes. Comparison with Tycho-2 positions indicates that the astrometric accuracy of the new catalog is more than 1'' better than that in Version 1.2. In addition to the Galactic plane, Areas Missed by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), and the Large Magellanic Cloud, which were included in the previous catalog, Version 2.3 includes data from the Small Magellanic Cloud, eight nearby galaxies, and several molecular clouds and star forming regions.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Maintainer IRSA Support
Last Updated September 14, 2026, 22:31 (UTC)
Created April 1, 2025, 12:50 (UTC)
accessLevel public
bureauCode {026:00}
catalog_conformsTo https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
harvest_object_id e49aa898-080b-41ff-9778-0f2bb7667450
harvest_source_id b99e41c6-fe79-4c19-bbc3-9b6c8111bfac
harvest_source_title Science Discovery Engine
identifier ivo://irsa.ipac/msx/psc
landingPage ivo://irsa.ipac/msx/psc
license https://www.usa.gov/government-works
modified 2026-09-07T22:15:59Z
programCode {026:000}
publisher NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive
resource-type Dataset
source_datajson_identifier true
source_hash 664dddd21a751311c18da1c420cfdd56ff7760818609e5271503fd7df3af2e88
source_schema_version 1.1
theme {Astrophysics}