ChaMPlane: X-Ray Sources in the Galactic Bulge and Center

The Galactic bulge and center within 4 degrees of the Galactic center are covered by this catalog of X-ray point sources. It contains 1159 sources from deep Chandra observations of three low-extinction Window fields and four other bulge fields, including Sgr B2 and Sgr A*. NASA HEASARC created this table in January 2010 based on a reference paper from the Astrophysical Journal.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the spatial distribution of X-ray sources based on the radial relation inversely proportional to offset from the Galactic center.
• Comparing X-ray and infrared surface brightness using the Chandra and Spitzer observations mentioned in the description.
• Classifying X-ray sources and estimating their fluxes using the quantile analysis method described.
• Investigating the spectral properties of Galactic bulge sources, including hardness trends and the presence of an iron emission line at 6.7 keV.
• Modeling the population of magnetic cataclysmic variables, primarily intermediate polars, as supported by the luminosity and spectral analysis.

Strengths

• Contains 1159 X-ray point source detections with net counts >= 1 in the 0.3-8 keV band.
• Sources are from deep 100 ks Chandra observations and archival data, covering seven distinct Galactic bulge fields.
• Analysis includes quantile classification to reduce systematic errors from uncertain spectra and extinction.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Last updated 2026-03-13 18:43:08.365195; freshness should be verified.

Provenance

Source

NASA HEASARC, based on Table 2 from a reference paper in the Astrophysical Journal.

Collection Method

Chandra Multiwavelength Plane (ChaMPlane) Survey observations and archival data analysis.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 18:43:08.365195

Geography

Galactic bulge and center, specifically fields within 4 degrees of the Galactic center.