SAGE-SMC MIPS 70 micron Combined Epoch Catalog

The SAGE-SMC project is a Spitzer Space Telescope legacy program mapping the Small Magellanic Cloud at infrared wavelengths. Observations were conducted at two epochs separated by 9 months for MIPS data to remove artifacts and constrain source variability. The catalog includes sources meeting criteria for point-like correlation and a signal-to-noise ratio greater than 5.

Use Cases

• Identify and analyze variable evolved stars and young stellar objects based on multi-epoch infrared observations.
• Study the structure and composition of the tidally-disrupted Small Magellanic Cloud using infrared source catalogs.
• Remove imaging artifacts from MIPS and IRAC data by comparing observations from two different spacecraft roll angles.
• Investigate point-like infrared sources with high correlation values and signal-to-noise ratios as described in the selection criteria.

Strengths

• Data from two epochs separated by 9 months (MIPS) to constrain variability and remove artifacts.
• Sources filtered for high correlation (>0.89) and signal-to-noise ratio (>5), removing approximately 2/3 of initial entries.
• Project is a formal Spitzer Space Telescope Cycle 4 legacy program with documented methodology.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The final catalog is estimated to contain less than 1% unreliable sources, and a separate 'Full List' contains spurious entries.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Infrared observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope's MIPS instrument, processed with StarFinder code.

Time Range

Observations from two specific epochs (Epochs 1 and 2), with a reference to an earlier Epoch 0 from the S3MC survey.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 17:51:37.424549; freshness should be verified.

Geography

The Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy and satellite of the Milky Way.