English: Atlas Image showing the Solar System asteroid 2 Pallas, one of the most studied and the second brightest of these minor planets. These data are part of the Spring 1999 data release, which will contain a number of other detections of known asteroids. Identification of the objects takes place as part of the 2MASS pipeline processing. Near-infrared photometry of asteroids can tell much about the Sun-reflecting surface composition, for example, the amount and nature of any organic solids or ices coating the asteroid's rocky interior. The properties of this regolith affect the albedo, or reflectivity, of the asteroid. Using thermal emission models for asteroids, for instance, a number of parameters, including diameter and thermal history, can be derived. The observed colors and inferred compositions of asteroids can place constraints on the thermal environment in the early Solar System, providing clues to the formation of the major planets, including the Earth.