Bolocam Galactic Plane Survey: 8,400 Dense Gas Sources at 1.1 mm

The Galactic Plane survey covers 170 square degrees, contiguous over -10.5 ≤ l ≤ 90.5, |b| ≤ 0.5, with additional targeted regions in the outer Galaxy. It contains approximately 8,400 sources detected at 1.1 mm wavelength, with an rms noise level of 30 to 60 mJy beam-1. The dataset was produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Identify and catalog dense molecular cores and clouds based on 1.1 mm thermal dust emission.
• Study the connection between dense gas repositories and star formation processes.
• Plan targeted follow-up observations for specific regions like Cygnus X or the Perseus Arm.
• Cross-match sources with other sub/millimeter surveys from Herschel, ALMA, or APEX.

Strengths

• Covers a large, contiguous area of 170 square degrees along the Galactic Plane.
• Contains approximately 8,400 detected sources, providing a substantial sample.
• Specifies precise galactic longitude and latitude boundaries for the survey coverage.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect observational bias inherent to the specific millimeter-wavelength survey method.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

1.1 mm continuum survey made using Bolocam on the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 18:00:59.902608; freshness should be verified.

Geography

The Galactic Plane, with specific coverage in galactic coordinates (longitude l and latitude b).