SAGE-SMC: Infrared Source Catalog for the Small Magellanic Cloud, Epoch 1

Spitzer Space Telescope's SAGE-SMC project mapped the Small Magellanic Cloud at 24 microns to study galaxy evolution. The Epoch 1 catalog contains point-like sources meeting strict criteria, including a correlation value >0.89 and signal-to-noise >5, filtering out approximately two-thirds of initial entries. This data, produced by NASA, provides constraints on source variability for evolved stars and young stellar objects.

Use Cases

• Identify and classify point-like infrared sources based on correlation and signal-to-noise criteria.
• Study stellar variability over time by comparing sources across multiple observation epochs.
• Analyze the distribution and properties of evolved stars and young stellar objects in the Small Magellanic Cloud.
• Remove imaging artifacts and improve data quality using observations from different telescope roll angles.

Strengths

• Sources were filtered using quantitative criteria: correlation >0.89 and signal-to-noise >5.
• Observations from two epochs separated by 9 months help constrain source variability.
• The final catalog is estimated to have less than 1% unreliable sources.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The 'Full List' contains spurious sources, requiring user caution.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Infrared observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope's MIPS instrument at 24 microns.

Time Range

Observations from Epoch 1, part of a two-epoch survey separated by 9 months.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 18:23:53.490391; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Small Magellanic Cloud, a tidally-disrupted, low-metallicity dwarf galaxy.