The WISE Extended Source Catalogue (WXSC) I: The 100 Largest Galaxies
  We present mid-infrared photometry and measured global properties of the 100
largest galaxies in the sky, including the Magellanic Clouds, Local Group
galaxies M31 and M33, the Fornax and Virgo Galaxy Cluster giants, and many of
the most spectacular Messier objects (e.g., M51 and M83). This is the first
release of a larger catalog of extended sources as imaged in the mid-infrared,
called the WISE Extended Source Catalogue (WXSC). In this study we measure
their global attributes, including integrated flux, surface brightness and
radial distribution. The largest of the large are the LMC, SMC and the
Andromeda Galaxy, which are also the brightest mid-infrared galaxies in the
sky. We interrogate the large galaxies using WISE colors, which serve as
proxies for four general types of galaxies: bulge-dominated spheroidals,
intermediate semi-quiescent disks, star-forming spirals, and AGN-dominated. The
colors reveal a tight "sequence" that spans 5 magnitudes in W2-W3 color,
ranging from early to late-types, and low to high star-forming activity; we fit
the functional form given by: ${\rm (W1-W2)} = [0.015 \times {\rm e}^{
\frac{{\rm (W2-W3)}}{1.38} }] - 0.08$. Departures from this sequence may reveal
nuclear, starburst, and merging events. Physical properties and luminosity
attributes are computed, notably the diameter, aggregate stellar mass and the
dust-obscured star formation activity. We introduce the 'pinwheel' diagram
which depicts physical properties with respect to the median value observed for
WISE galaxies in the local universe. Utilized with the WXSC, this diagram will
delineate between different kinds of galaxies, identifying those with similar
star formation and structural properties. Finally, we present the mid-infrared
photometry of the 25 brightest globular clusters in the sky, including Omega
Centauri, 47 Tucanae and a number of famed night-sky targets (e.g. M 13).
(Abridged)
