Point Sources from a Spitzer/IRAC Survey of the Galactic Center (GALCEN)

Spitzer/IRAC observations of the central 2.0 deg by 1.4 deg (~ 280 pc by 200 pc) of the Galaxy were obtained at 3.6-8.0 microns in Cycle 1 (GO 3677, PI: Stolovy). These data represent the highest spatial resolution (~2 arcsec) and sensitivity uniform large-scale map made to date of the Galactic Center at mid-infrared wavelengths.

A point source catalog of 1,065,565 objects was obtained. The catalog includes magnitudes for the point sources at 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8.0 microns, as well as JHK photometry from 2MASS. The point source catalog is confusion limited with average limits of 12.4, 12.1, 11.7, and 11.2 magnitudes for [3.6], [4.5], [5.8], and [8.0], respectively. The confusion limits are spatially variable because of stellar surface density, background surface brightness level, and extinction variations across the survey region. More details about the point source catalog can be found at Ramírez et al. 2008.

This dataset or service is made available by the Infrared Science Archive (IRSA) at IPAC, which is operated by the California Institute of Technology under contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

斯必泽空间望远镜/红外阵列相机（Spitzer/IRAC）对银河系中心2.0°×1.4°（约280秒差距×200秒差距）区域的观测数据，是在第1轮观测周期（GO 3677，首席研究员：Stolovy）中于3.6~8.0微米波段获取的。该数据集是迄今为止中红外波段下，针对银河系中心制作的空间分辨率（约2角秒）与灵敏度均为当前最高的全域均匀大尺度巡天图像。

研究团队共构建了包含1065565个天体的点源星表。该星表收录了3.6、4.5、5.8及8.0微米波段下点源的星等数据，同时包含来自2微米全天巡天（Two Micron All-Sky Survey, 2MASS）的JHK测光数据。本点源星表受源混淆效应限制，[3.6]、[4.5]、[5.8]和[8.0]波段的平均极限星等分别为12.4、12.1、11.7和11.2等。由于巡天区域内恒星面密度、背景面亮度及消光均存在空间变化，该混淆极限亦存在空间差异。有关该点源星表的更多细节可参见Ramírez等人2008年的研究成果。

本数据集或相关服务由IPAC下属的红外科学档案馆（Infrared Science Archive, IRSA）提供发布，IPAC由加州理工学院按照与美国国家航空航天局（National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA）签订的合同开展运营。