COBE Observations of Zodiacal Emission

Abstract

AbstractThe COBE Diffuse Infrared Background Experiment has obtained some of the most extensive observations of the interplanetary dust (IPD) cloud ever assembled. For the 10 months of cryogenic operation, the brightness of the entire celestial, sphere was mapped with an 0.7° x 0.7° field of view at wavelengths of 1.25, 2.2, 3.5, 4.9, 12, 25, 60, 100, 140, and 240 μm, and the linear polarization was mapped at 1.25, 2.2, and 3.5 μm. Observations with reduced sensitivity continued at all wavelengths short of 12 μm for over 3 years after cryogen expiration. Throughout these observations, nearly 1/2 of the sky was mapped every day at elongation angles ranging from 64° to 124°. I describe the DIRBE and the general character of the infrared sky, outline the DIRBE team's approach to isolating the IPD signal, and review results of our initial studies of the zodiacal dust bands, the circumsolar dust ring, and the character of IPD cloud particles.